The Hunter
by Zodidj
Summary: Ranma returns to the world after saffrons death, 15 years later. He brings with him a 'Daughter' Please R&R thanks. Rewrite finished, and now can continue. *discontinued - being rewritten in Reconstructed.*
1. Intro v2

**Update 1.1 Grammar and some content, to correct logic issues/storyline issues (5/1)**

_**I own nothing. Come-on you're here, we don't own anything. Everything is to their respective owners. Wait Original deity's etc. I DO own. But everything else I don't.**_

_Authors note : new idea for me. Hopefully one that has not been played to death. Ranma returns from another world. He will be slightly more adjusted, since if anything he has lived a less chaotic life in the other world. He has a "daughter" sort of. And he is uhmmm 15 years past the end of the anime, and somewhere during the sailor moon time. Since I am not really QUITE sure when things occur in the SMU well, its all AU anyway._

_Please review and let me know what you think. I know grammar is a challenge for me. I may try to see who I can con into proofing it. It should be fun anyway. With as late in timeline as it is, no fiancés are allowed to ride the horse here. I don't have any specific thoughts on relationships, ect. I do know the villain is a tremendous brain spider._

**Prologue**

In China.

"Time to die" screamed Saffron, god of the phoenix peoples. He grew weary of the insects that had stood against him today. He was reborn, and these 'creatures' dared to try and stand against him.

"I am a god, you cannot stand" Saffron continued his assault against the boy with the black pigtail.

"Shut UP!" roared back the heir of the anything goes school, Ranma Saotome. Ranma was starting to slow down. His life force bore more and more of the brunt of the fight. Even with the power of the Gekkaja he was channeling life forces that were far beyond what should be humanly possible. Beyond the brightness of his aura, a different type of energy became visible. It was the energy of his life, causing him to look like his body was starting to be made from smoke.

'Losing it here' Ranma thinks to himself. On the edges of his chi, it was starting to ripple faster around the edges as Ranma was getting closer to collapsing. The Gekkaja twirled in his hands, faster and faster trying to fend off the flames of the fire god.

"Give up boy. You are done" screamed Saffron. "This was the only conclusion. You Lose!"

"I" *_block_* "Never"_ *thrust*_ "Lose!" Ranma screamed back over the sounds of the winds, flames and ice. Through the swirling mass of the powers being released Saffron's flames Ranma could see a ball of fire forming. Responding to this Ranma started to form his own sphere of ice forming around his own body.

Ranma fell deeper and deeper into his soul of ice, ignoring everything else. Ranma impaled Saffron with the Gekkaja and tried in vain to overcome the fires of the phoenix with the ice of his being and the magic of the Gekkaja. Flames and Ice danced and intertwined building up the energies of the magic's and compressing them.

A singular explosion occurred, spreading light across the sky, and was visible for hundreds of miles.

Here was the crossroads. For all that destiny and free will reacted to the forces of the world, any true god would trump the power of a mortal, no matter how powerful or skilled he was. This was the point when Saffron would make his decision about how this reality would proceed. For all of the power Ranma had exerted, he still was not a god. Saffron was the one who would choose.

There were as always three main options here. In the one in most multiverses he selected would be to try and kill Akane to hurt the boy who was soon to end his life. Various outcomes came from this with all of them ending with Ranmas death usually at the hand of Akane. Another one would be that he opts for self-destruction rather than target anyone in particular. This often ended in everyone other than Ranma himself perishing, from the resulting power. The last would be to put all of his energy into continuing to try and engulf Ranma until the end. This was not usually the chosen path, as it meant not giving into pride, and simply fighting till the end. When that option is picked by a dying Saffron, usually it meant that in his last burst both him and Ranma would be consumed.

This is a different ending however, with a much smaller chance of probability that the others. Here, some random factors come together, and a new ending is forged.

&^%$#!#$%^&

Far from here, the fight between Ranma and Saffron was blinding Lady Pluto and the Time Gates to something she was actively looking for. The Fights eventual ending used so much Chi and magical energy that any scrying throughout the world was showing only their fight. It would take weeks for Pluto to even establish that the event she looked for, the resurrection of Serenity, had actually taken place when it was supposed to, more or less. When she looked though for any cause however all she could find was this blinding energy, and the reborn egg of saffron. The other half of the fight appeared to be gone from the dimension entirely.

&^%$#!#$%^&

Saffron feels the cold of the attack attempt to overcome him. His form is shifting as much as Ranma's as the power bleeds out of them both. He is a god, he will not back down. He will take this mortal with him, into the blackness. Powers and attacks roll off of each other, building as each form bleed more and more out. They were reaching the absolute focus and death would soon claim the lives of both warriors. Saffron has made his choice; he will fight to the last, to win. Ranma knows no other way to exist.

&^%$#!#$%^&

In Tokyo something that should have happened 5 hours later instead happened then. An overflowing wave of magic was released into the world with the sound of a newborn princess's first cry. Magical beings would assume this to be a side effect of the battle underway and they would be wrong. Serenity has been reincarnated and her birth would push just enough magic into the world right at the moment of focus. The Magic's being tossed around the mountains of china were enough to bring her into being just a little early. The magic of her birth fed itself back to the war over china.

&^%$#!#$%^&

The last wave had completed, and the burst of the energies spread out around the mountain. The mountain started to buckle under the strength of the energy release. This would have soon consumed the lives of all present. The magic of the birth reached the energy spout that was forming over the mountain causing all the energies to ripple back into themselves. The force of energy this held caused the bindings of the dimension itself to be shredded creating a portal. The gate pulled all of the excess energy into it. The falling body of an unconscious Ranma, dropping from his dancing point in the whirlwind was pulled into that energy tornado, and pulled through the gate.

Saffron's form would glow, shimmer and dissolve, leaving behind the golden egg from which his next body would be born.

No one was able to see the boy as he fell and then disappeared. They could only see the blinding light, that reached across the heavens and filled the sky of Asia. In the following years this would be called the Byankala event.

The deaths of Ranma and Akane fell hard on the families in Nermia, but time heals all wounds, more or less.

For 15 years, everyone would think that Ranma was dead. No one could ever find his body, until much later. Everyone reasoned how could he have survived? 15 years was time enough for the pains of his loss to be lessened, for most anyway. There were several funerals falling from that event. While the loss was keenly felt by many of survivors of the NWC for years, eventually they all would move on. Only one person would ever maintain hope that Ranma would be found one day, Cologne, who felt if anyone could have found a way to survive he would. She felt the opening but was never sure that the Saotome boy had escaped the final blast or not.

15 years later, the 2nd event took place. A similar light appeared across the sky, this time centered in Tokyo. Those who survived the fight in China felt that another great fight has happened, and later events of that day would give everyone more reason follow that idea. It would be weeks before most of them realized that he had returned.

The light flared across Tokyo and at its center stood a boy and girl, both appearing to be teens. One was a boy wearing a black shirt and pants of Chinese design. The silver bracers he wore along matched a silver metal tip on his pony tail. A great silver dragon wrapped around his left shoulder. Next to him, a smaller girl who was desperately clutching his hand stood there. She also had long black hair, and wore similar outfit. Her eyes glowed softly red however, and if you examined hard you could see just the tips of horns poking out from the hair.

"Saiel kos dun illma Cassy." Spoke the boy.

The girl nodded

"Saiel kos dun gre unar" she replied bowing her head slightly.

The Boy looked around, taking in his surroundings.

"Unar vel kol erun?" the dark haired girl asked the boy.

"Cassy, xia vol Nippon ul urth." He replyied.

The girl looked annoyed somewhat. "But why daddy, I hate it when you make me talk like this"

"Because Cassy. I think we have come to my home." He looked around, seeing what he knew in his heart was Tokyo. He was not sure what district, but it felt like home to him. "I don't know WHEN we are but I know where. This is the city I used to live in."

The girl looked around as well.

"It's ugly."

"Yes that it is." The boy responded. "You will need to remember to address me by my name here. No one would understand how you could be my daughter"

The pair started walking down the street. Other pedestrians were starting to move as well. No one had noticed them appear thanks to the flash of light in the sky.

"Dad..er Ranma, why would they not understand that. Anyone could see I am your child by just looking at us" the girl glanced around. She still held his hand, unwilling to let it go. As they moved, Ranma kept looking for some sign to clue him in on where he was exactly.

"Its because they do not have succubus's here, Cassy. You are the gift of Kosh. They don't have anyone or anything like Saiel or Kosh here. Humans rule here, not gods. Remember I told you, the last god I saw here, I killed"

&$%^&

Chibi-Usa was feeling nervous.

Actually that was only one of the many emotions she felt at the present time. Nervous, anxious, dread hope each of these feelings played out in her mind. She knew the event of the light and knew what it heralded, sort of.

'I love Pluto dearly but I wish she had been reborn already.' She thought to herself as she replayed what she knew of the Event in Tokyo. The great light signaled the coming of the Hunter. It also signaled that the minions of the Thirst were not far behind. The Senshi would know little about this until the thirst started to move against the residents of Tokyo. Then there were all of the possible events. Pluto may or may not have directed the Senshi to attack the hunter. The future Pluto could tell the current Pluto to attack the Hunter and that this would lead to a disagreement between her mother and Pluto. The Current Pluto could decide that it's wrong and not attack the hunter. There could be two Pluto's here at once. All of this she knew could have happened, or something else entirely. She was not as good at reading the possibilities of the gates yet. She also knew that the Pluto from her time was thoroughly out of her mind.

Chibi-Usa was alone, so could release the glamor she kept around her and wander around a bit. Contrary to her glamour, she did not in fact have pink hair, it was a deep red. While she did have fond memories of her original color, the darker red as she grew older just suited her much more. She knew she could not tell the current Senshi of what the real situation in the future was, that would damage them too much. Maybe one, but that remained to be seen. She also knew that this was a very dangerous time for the scouts, from dangers within. Without external monsters, they turned again on each other.

The secret she kept was that in Chibi-Usa's time Pluto had lost her mind. Too much time and memories for Pluto to bear. Chibi-Usa had been researching what records existed on the nature and function of the Keeper of Time ever since she had first made her trip back, and realized that there were some massive differences of the Pluto of old, and the one she grew up with. In examining the silver millennium records, she found that as the Heir of the throne she had greater access to records than she had originally thought she would. She was able to put together how things were designed to work, and realized just how much her Pluto had screwed up things in the kingdom.

Until her mother, Queen Serenity the V, there had always been oversight of the time gates by the queen. It maintained the power of the queens. They had a watcher of the gates so constantly scan them and they examined the gates as well so that they could decide for themselves what was needed if anything. Pluto always acted as watcher. From lifetime to lifetime it was always her that acted as watchdog. The real problem was that Neo-queen serenity was not very well prepared to take over as queen, and at an early age learned to trust Pluto implicitly. Pluto had nothing but the best at heart for what was to take place, but do to the nature of the gates, and the lack of the oversight of an active queen monitoring her watcher all of Pluto's information came from her future self. The same future self that Chibi-Usa had decided that age and time had gotten the best of.

The Pluto in the future was ignoring one of the main flaws of the time gates. That flaw was the user could only see into the gates as far as that user lived in the upcoming years. In crystal Tokyo Pluto had only one possible future to look at because her time was near to the end. This flaw was always worked around by the Queen monitoring the gates as well. Unless in some chance point both the Queen and Pluto perished at the same time there would be overlap. The Pluto of the future, gave the Pluto of the past the idea of a lasting utopia if they would only push for this one future. Nothing however is forever. The Pluto of the past should have known better.

If the Neo-Queen were paying watching the gates she would see what now was going to come because of her lack of action. Instead she had spent almost two thousand years trusting in the dictates of her time guardian.

Chibi-Usa however knew what was coming and that Pluto had magnificently failed. Chibi-Usa needed to try and fix things before not only the earth was gutted, but perhaps the entire universe, thanks to creatures known as the Thirst. She also knew that the gates never seemed to survive more than a few years beyond the current Pluto's life.

"Oh man now I have to track down someone who I may or may marry in my time, to protect him from a Time guardian who may or may not try and have him killed. And that he is here to deal with a threat that may or may not end the universe. I wish the gates kept a cliff notes version of itself around.."

Chibi-Usa continued to walk down the street, looking for something that seemed out of place. As chance would have it she was only three blocks from where Ranma and Cassy were walking that she unfortunately got distracted by her one true weakness. Ice Cream.

&#$$%^&

Cassy had seen her father do many amazing things over the time that she had existed. He had become the avatar of both the Hunter of the Twisted and the Dark Lady of Corruption. He destroyed the many of the minions of the great spider type being who wanted to feed in the Realm. Then when his time was done serving Kosh he was given the spirit form of his daughter, Casselia. She knew that once he received his gift from Kosh, Ranma moved against the corruptors of innocence, and became Saiel's living avatar. He served her well too and was gifted by her this return to his home. He was not the greatest of all Avatars, but he had been seen as a powerful Hunter of the realm, and served two of the Great ones with distinction.

"There we go" Ranma said aloud as he finally found a train station, and with that the location he was at. "Juuban district. Close I guess" he turned to walk towards his old home, knowing it would take him hours to get there. Ranma was not as flashy as he used to be. While he still had the appearance of his old form, he had no real concept of how long he had been in the Realm. Time did not exist there as such. He knew that to him he had been gone for some period of time. His body just never changed in that place.

*Flashback*

Val 'En looked out across the field to where the line of foes stood. 'Now, is a good time to die' he mused to himself. Val 'en was the Avatar of Kosh, Hunter of those who were called the Thirst. The realm bordered the lands of the Thirst and it was that border that the Elder one sent out his forces to hunt.

The Thirst itself had no ruler per se. The strongest of the creatures was the Ungoll, a great energy mass that looked similar to a thousand legged spider that was the size of a mountain. From the Ungoll came the threads that formed the land of the thirst. The smaller minions of this realm were man sized spiders, which were fairly weak in comparison to the more powerful denizens. All of the demons that fed off of the life force and blood of mortals came from this realm, with those that on the earth would be called Vampires and Succubus's being the top of the food chain so to speak. Succubus's were the more dangerous of the two to the hunters, as they fed on the energy of the hunters, making them weaker over time. Usually one hunter team would be sent after a single Succubus. If the avatar was with them, then they could possibly go after two, though succubus's had thus far never worked together. The avatar on his own could fight one to a standstill. Only a single one though.

Val 'En looked across the field to the magnificent trap he had walked into. His hunting party had come after a succubus who had been raiding across the border. They had followed her, into a large party of the least of the minions. That pack however had forced them back closing off their escape route. At this Val 'En was unconcerned, it would take time but those minions were little threat to them. It was as they continued to cut through the minions that they saw the real reason for this. A group of six Succubus's who were coming after them.

His men could see them, and they too knew that this was the end for them. The lesser minions were the only thing keeping them alive at this point, acting as a buffer that time would eventually eat away, and they succubus's would then feed.

Val 'En had served Kosh to the best of his ability. He was satisfied with his service and only regretted that this would mean he would no longer be able to return to the wheel and be reborn. Nothing Val 'en knew of would be able to help them defeat this enemy.

As he had these thoughts, and prepared to rally his hunters once more a ball of fire formed in-between him and the attacking forces. It grew into a horizontal pillar of the most intense flames ever seen in this world. Val 'En could see the rip in space occur, and beyond it, nothing but flames. After a few moments the flames died and Val 'en realized that his opponents were now nothing but ash.

On the ground in front of him lay a boy seemingly dead. Slight movement in his chest shed Val 'en that he was in fact alive. Val 'En motioned to his men, who picked up the boy and they returned to the Realm. As they were picking up the boy, Val 'en noticed a shining sphere, laying on the ground in the ashes of his foes. Picking it up he decided to present it to his lord Kosh alone with the boy. The ball was warm to the touch and pulsed in time to Val 'En's heartbeat.

*end flashback*

They walked along and Cassy finally let his hand go. She had a small contented smile on her face as she processed the energy that her father had given her. They walked along and she started asking him no end of questions about the place they were, and what she should expect. This is how they made their way across Juuban.

&#$%^&

Usagi Tsukino or as she was this moment Sailor Moon was having a bad day. Her boyfriend had broken up with her. There was a girl who was pretending to be her cousin who really was her daughter. Her daughter appeared to know more about things than she did but kept saying that she could not talk about things that had not yet happened. Her boyfriend was supposed to be her 'Daughters' Father. Her friends were being mean to her saying she was useless and not acting up to her potential. Her boyfriend had broken up with her. She had a killer migraine and had to hunt the stupid Youma on her own. She had not had ice cream in days and HER BOYFRIEND HAD BROKEN UP WITH HER.

The only good spot she thought in her life right now was that a young girl who knew more about pain than anyone she knew still wanted to be her friend. At least when her Boyfriend and friends all abandoned her, Hotaru was always right there with her.

Sailor Moon jumped from roof top to roof top. She had felt something odd in the air, when the great light appeared. Something that seemed familiar to her but she was not sure how. A long lost memory of something she should not have been able to remember. She was not the best as tracking or feeling or anything else to be sure but she did feel something was close. She jumped a few more times and looked up to see the setting sun.

"Damm him anyway. Rei and him can go jump in a lake for all I care" she said aloud. The sunset was so warming all she could think about was sunset shared with HIM. She could see out across the sea in the distance and it appeared to be a rippling sea of silver, from the way the light caught on the water. It reminded her of trips on the water with… She shook her head a bit somewhere between anger and sadness. As she did the weird feeling she was looking for grew stronger and her eyes fell on a cute couple walking along dressed in black and silver. She sighed inside as they looked so happy. One of the cutest boys she had ever seen, and a very cute girl next to him, seemly talking to him animatedly. She was just about to continue her search for 'whatever' it was that she was looking for when her blood went a little cold. The girl had horns. The girl just Screamed Demon when looking at her. Some small part of her brain tried to point out that there was not a hint of hostility about this girl. The rest of her brain however went the "protect innocent Hun… er Humans, who need protecting from obvious demons" route.

&#$%^^%%$#$&

Cassy enjoyed the walk and the talk with her favorite person in any world, her daddy. She knew that for a succubus she was very different than most. For one, she was the first one that could stand in the light of Saiel without burning. Ranma had explained it to her once; she lacked any corruption in her so Saiel would not burn her. She had fed from daddy ever since her creation. He was such a huge food source that all she needed was to hold his hand, or be close to him and her hunger subsided. He spent a lot of time making sure as well that she never grew hungry enough to become what her kind was. He trained her, taught her and in general protected her from almost everything in the Realm.

They walked along, and Ranma was telling her vastly amusing stories about a lost boy who turned into a pig. She had started to laugh at the story when a white blur appeared in front of them.

"Vile demon girls who entrap cute boys can never be allowed to exist. In the name of the… Urk!" as a hand reached up faster than she could see and Moon suddenly felt herself falling backwards, hard.

"Owie…" Sailor moon whined at them. She glared at the boy who seemed human enough. "I am trying to protect you, why did you do that?"

"Protect me? From her? Seems to me that you were pontificating more than anything else" The boy just smirked down at her, and then offered her a hand up.

"Hi I am Ranma Saotome, Sorry about that"

"uhmm Sailor moon" she replied. She pulled herself up to a taller height. "I can understand that she has enamored you but I must stop the…." _*Urgk*_ and once again she was on her butt.

Ranma looked down at his hand, and back at her. "I am sorry were you pontificating again? Must make you clumsy…"

Moon looked at him angrily. "I am not clumsy" she lied "you keep pushing me down."

"Well maybe you should stop attacking her then" it was then that Sailor moon noticed that the girl was hiding behind Ranma, with a fearful expression on her face. Still sitting on the ground she just took a deep breath and sort of scanned them to see if either were evil.

She was shocked to find nothing evil about the girl at all. The boy was more evil than the girl was, and he was as far as she could tell a very nice guy.

"Ok, ok, I get it. She is not evil even if she is a demon. I apologize for making the assumption". Sailor moon said to them.

The boy smiled at her and she noticed that he had the nicest smile she had seen on well anyone and his eyes should be listed as deadly weapons. Getting lost in those was not the thought she had. Giving up ice cream for those, was closer to the truth. He did not have that all-encompassing effect on her that Mammaru did, does, ohh whatever. Just she looked in them and Wow. She sighed quietly to herself. 'Chibi-Usa is still around, so somehow or other I still have Mamo-chan'

Ranma just looked at her nervously. He had seen that look before. He felt Cassy still hiding behind him gripping his arm for comfort. "It's ok Cassy, she is not going to be mean to you, Right" he finished looking at the Fuku clad girl in front of him.

"Uhmm yes of course not" Moon stuttered.

"Good I would hate for you to keep tripping, Might chip a nail or something. I would hate to see any sort of cheerleader doing that…

Sailor moons Eyes twitched at that. Cheerleader?

"

**The laws of the Hunters**

First:

"Kosh has summoned us to serve in his great hunt. As the thirst draws all life into itself, by hunting we disperse that life back into the wheel. Our lives are forfeit to the greater needs of life. We were summoned by Kosh, from the edge of death, and our pasts are forgotten, we take a new path, and all our brothers."

Second:

"Kosh takes his own council when choosing an avatar. The avatars lead the hunters, but not always have the most power. They are what Kosh needs right then. HE has sent them into the Web, and he has sent them to other realms, if the thirst will be there, they will always find hunters to stand against. "

Third:

"Kosh summons Hunters all pasts, good and evil, chaos and order. Remember to treat them with respect, as Kosh has found them worthy. IF a hunter find himself moved by Kosh to another realm, then the thirst is coming there, and the hunter needs to train others to hunt."

Fourth:

"Not always are being of thirst counter to Kosh's will. As he once chose a part of the thirst act as his avatar he shall do so again. He knows his needs, we exist to serve them."

Fifth:

"'Always offer forgiveness to any who ask. If they are true, then they are an ally against the darkness. War and purity are not the only paths on the hunt."

Sixth:

"If one releases another, from a just hunt then they are responsible for what the hunted does. They must protect them, Guide them and put them down if they fall. The hunted can be forgiven the hunt only if the hunter is willing to join unto it'.

Seventh:

"A life that is given freely is a life that is to be respected. If that life had been lost in some measure it is now back in the fold of the light. It is easier to give your life for friends and loved ones than it is for to give it to those who you have reason to fear or you have wronged. All can choose their fate. We must respect that."


	2. Chapter 1 Reunions V2

_Rewrite occurring to fix logic problems, storyline issues and grammar issues. There will be some largish additions content wise, so if you reach something before chapter 14 that looks to be contradictory that I do NOT have a rewrite disclaimer on then it will be fixed with this rewrite_

**Chapter 1 Reunions**

The morning sun was warming and filling. Blue skies had the hint of clouds, white cottony ones. Cassy could see birds in the air, and sitting on poles that appeared to be tied together. Cassy had never seen anything like this morning the in Realm.

"Selan unvos, alalch me tir de ungar, alach me undas tir" she said softly.

"Selan unvos cassy, yes it is beautiful. I had forgotten just how beautiful this world could be" replied her father.

**&^$%##!#$%^&**

_Last night _

Sailor moon looked at the boy who had just called her a cheerleader.

'Well at least it was not "meatball head" like everyone else. Cheerleaders were at least generally considered attractive even if it was a bit demeaning.

"Let me see if I can start this again. Hi, I am The warrior of love and justice, Sailor moon" Moon stood up tall.

Ranma and Cassy just looked at her. Cassy didn't know quite how to take this, but Ranma found it the funniest pose he had seen since Kuno or Kodachi.

"Please tell me you don't have someone around who throw roses" laughed Ranma. He was of course thinking of black ones laced with some sort of poison, but she didn't know that.

"I… I did yes". Her smiling face fell. "Then he sort of left me for one of my best friends."

'Great. After a long absence the trademarked Ranma foot in mouth disease reared its ugly head.' Ranma thought.

"Well, It's not THAT late, why don't you wait up there *pointing at the top of a roof* and I'll see about getting us some ice cream and we can talk about it."

With ought saying anything else Ranma turned and left for the nearby coffee shop that he had passed a few moments ago. He did remember that there was an Ice Cream sign in the window, so figured he would go there and get some.

Sailor moon just watched him run off, and Cassy obediently half jumped and half flew to the top of the roof where he pointed. Moon was torn. She was supposed to be patrolling (i.e. getting away from the rest of them). Cute boy just ran off telling here to go to a roof top to wait for him while he got her ice cream. His girlfriend went to the roof top to wait, and she looked like a demon.

'Hmmm Watching Demon girl = Free ice cream. Watching demon girl also equals Patrolling." Ohh what the hell. It's my birthday; I can have some ice cream. "So she jumped up top, to wait for him too."

"So" she asked the demon politely, "how long have you too been dating?"

"Daddy? How long have we been what? I don't think I know what a 'Date' is. "

Moon just looked at her in shock. Daddy? What the hell did she mean by that?

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Ranma had missed Ice-cream and was past the notion that only girls ate it. Problem was in the Realm, ice cream was not to be found. He went inside, saw several patrons, and a little soda/coffee car that had a couple of folks sitting at. Not really meaning too he went up fairly close to this one girl with red hair who was sitting at the bar alone to order. Ranma had of course forgotten something fairly important about this.

He looked the menu over, and said politely to the guy working there "I would like three chocolate ice cream cones please.

The guy behind the bar nodded, and started to make them up half way through the 2nd on gotten ready he said to Ranma "that will be 350 yen please"

'Yen? Crap, money I haven't had to use money in a long time.' Ranma fidgeted.

The girl who sat near him heard him say

"I would like three chocolate ice creams please." And she looked up and Usa saw Him. The boy she was looking for. Well she thought he may be the one. Either way Ranma was a dead ringer for the boy she was looking for. The outfit was right. She had seen those bracers before, in the gates. His voice even sounded familiar if younger than in the gates.

Ranma sighed "I am sorry sir but I have forgotten my money, so I will come back and get these another time." Ranma bowed his head and turned to leave. The man at the bar was annoyed of course, until he heard someone else say "Wait; I'll buy them for you, on one condition."

Ranma turned and took a close look at the girl sitting there. He could honestly say he had not seen anyone like her so it was unlikely at best that she was some sort of fiancée.

"Some old man did not promise your hand in marriage to a young martial artist did he?" Ranma was not normally one to turn down free food, but the time in the Realm had taught him a fair bit about asking first and not assuming things.

"No, I can't see my father doing that, not to a marital artist anyway". Usa replied. After Usa had learned started looking into the gates functions, she suspected that she was not really from her own time, and that she was being treated like glass in the kingdom. She also felt that there was someone else, sometimes that folks referred too when they talked about her. Someone who was never in the same room with her at the same time. After her limited understanding of how the gates worked however, she was starting to get an idea of who it was they were refereeing too, and why no concept of relationship or Dating was ever brought up about her.

"Well then, since you're not some scheming fiancée I'll be happy to answer you" Ranma smiled. If Usa had not been so desperately trying to hide her wince at that, she would have blushed. Instead she tried to act the princess she suspected she not yet was.

"If you tell me why you need three, and what your name is" Usa replied, trying to make sure she had the right guy or not.

"Well, there is this cheerleader who needed someone to talk too, and I figured ice cream for her. Cassy, and I would work before I took Cassy to meet her family." Ranma himself often forgot quite how things sounded, even though he told Cassy not to say she was his daughter, he kept calling her that.

Usa wondered to herself what he meant by "cheerleader' but kept her mouth shut. Knowing anything to do with her family it would be her mom he was giving ice cream too. 'Ohh crap! I better get some tot take home too. Birthday today and I have no present. Ice cream will always work'

Ranma noticed his own slip and thought to himself.' Hmmm maybe that idea won't work. Not if we are both calling her my daughter. Just have to come up with a better excuse or something. Locked Jusenkyo curse maybe?"

Usa also was thinking to herself 'Bingo. Cassy was a name I saw, as was Ranma. Now I just have to keep tabs on him'

Usa dug in her pocket and pulled out 400 yen. Pocketing the change she looked at Ranma, again. "Maybe you can let me meet your daughter sometime Ranma. My name is Usa Tsukino, if you ever feel like chatting, let me know." She quickly wrote a number down, and handed it to him.

Ranma felt he knew where this was going 'at least I got everyone ice cream.'

"uhmmm Sure I guess" he replied. Usa smiled at him. "Hey it's just to talk. I don't meet many single guys who know how to care for daughters your age." She winked at him and walked off hiding her own blush.

The guy behind the coffee bar looked at Ranma "Never tell them you have a kid, boy it's like blood in the water too them."

"To who?" asked Ranma.

"Unattached females. Best aphrodisiac there is. Unmarried men who can handle children."

Ranma just shook his head and went back to take the girls their ice cream.

Cassy and Moon had been talking about all of the "crazy" things that had happened in each other's lives, and by the time Ranma got back Moon was in a much better mood. The Ice cream was good too. After a bit more talking Ranma realized he needed to do something about a place to stay.

"Hey Moon, do you know a shrine around here? I think I have been to most of them but I can't remember where the nearest one is."

"Sure it's over there, about 5 blocks up that hill" Moon pointed at the Hino shrine. "Why do you need one?"

"Ohh I can always get a space to crash a night at a shrine. I have studied at enough of them. We are not going to make it to Nermia tonight, but I can barter with the shrine for tonight."

Moon was a little annoyed at this, but she also knew she could not invite a boy and girl who only knew her as Sailor Moon, in to her home, even for the night without serious questioning and telling the two why she was a magical girl. Silently she hoped this would work out for them well, the old priest WAS a really nice guy and all. She just hoped Rei would not 'Ruin' him. Then again she was kind of sure that Cassy would protect him, and who ever this Saiel was she kept talking about.

"Well, I hope we see each other again, Ranma, Cassy. I thought tonight was going to suck, but it's been ok" Moon smiled at them.

"Yeah must really suck to have to be out here on your birthday. You need better friends" Ranma replied without thinking.

She nodded and jumped away, starting her roof top back towards her house. It was only after several blocks she stopped and said to herself "Birthday? I never told them that. How did he know that?"

She continued jumping hoping that she would see her new friends again, and praying he was not another Dark General.

Ranma to his credit was wondering how he knew that as well. But he was to busy getting Cassy to the shrine to see if he could work to cover for a night's stay.

When they got there, the shrine priest agreed and gave Ranma what he thought was a long list of repairs to do before they left. Surprisingly Ranma had all of them done before the priest even finished making them a simple meal.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Ranma was insistent on doing this his way. His last memory from before he came here was fighting and killing a god. Some lousy spider creature was not going to get the best of him.

From outside the training pen, Val 'en watched the newest summoned of Kosh train against a captured type 1 thirst. These were the weakest of the creature that came from the Web, and were often captured to help train those new to the path. All who came thought they knew how to fight these being. Very few had come knowing how to in truth.

Ranma threw his best techniques at the thing, only to have most of them absorbed. If anything the spider seemed to be growing larger the more he attacked. Especially his Chi attacks the thing seemed to relish.

And this thing drained him. The longer he spent in the company of it, the more tired he became. This was not like anything he had ever fought before.

Val 'en just waited. Kosh had already shown him that this was a needed path to take, the path of breaking him down a bit, before teaching him. He was too confident in himself. The Thirst in many ways meant to sacrifice one's self to the task.

In the ring the spider was not completely inactive either. It needed do almost nothing to drain this one. It was offering its own life willingly. But it was busy trying to absorb the energies offered to it, so that it could grow. A few more minutes and it would have evolved enough to advance. His meal would then lose its usefulness, for it would require massive amounts for its next incarnation.

Val 'en watched Ranma slow down rapidly. Just like the last three times he had tried his best, but Val 'en needed to stop the type 1 before it could advance. Val 'en pulled his blade and signaled the other hunters to enter the ring and cut the creature down.

They helped Ranma leave the ring, just as they had the last few times when he trained. Val 'en once more asked Ranma "Are you ready to learn how to fight them?"

Ranma glared at him "I CAN beat these things. I will figure it out without weapons."

Val 'en just shook his head. HE would teach Ranma when Ranma was ready to learn. Until then he just needed to watch and wait. 4 more times Ranma would fight these things before he was willing to learn.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

They had spent the night at a temple in Azabu-Juuban that Sailor Moon pointed them to but Ranma had never been to. The old priest there seemed to give Ranma and Cassy odd looks through the evening that Ranma noticed. Ranma for his part took care of several odd jobs that the temple needed as payment for the nights hospitality. He introduced Cassy to the concept of a furo. This type of bath Cassy was thoroughly enraptured by.

The old priest made them dinner, a simple one of rice and broth.

After dinner they all adjoined to the court yard to sit in the calmness of the deepening shadows. Cassy had discovered something else new to her, fireflies. She in her childlike fashion started chasing them to see if she could catch one.

"That girl is refreshing to watch. I have never seen someone her age showing me the world in such a childlike manner" said the priest of the temple to Ranma.

Ranma smiled "Hino-san, she is a child. And she acts exactly as I expect she should. She is just a child who looks far older than she is"

The priest looked at him. He knew the boy had introduced himself as Ranma Saotome but there was no way this young man could be THAT Ranma. 'He must be a relative I guess' Hino thought to himself. 'That was over a decade ago.'

Still the priest wished that his granddaughter were her so he could introduce them. Something about the young man revealed quiet power. A lot of it. And the priest could tell from watching Ranma and Cassy that there was a deep capacity for kindness and love there as well.

"I am sorry that my granddaughter is not here to help on this she is a much better cook than I am" The priest said to Ranma as he looked back to the girl chasing fireflies. "She should be back soon; she was at her study group tonight".

Ranma nodded to him. "As long as you did not have an agreement with an idiotic martial artist offering his son in marriage to her, I would be honored to meet your granddaughter, Hino-san"

Hino again blinked. Something about that statement reminded him of the stories the other Saotome told him when she came to him for counseling. No-Chan talked about a lot of magical things about her son, and that statement seemed to be so similar to her stories.

Hino heard the phone ring and talked to his granddaughter on the phone, she was staying out tonight, at one of her friends place. Hino sighed. So much for this introduction.

After more idle conversation, Hino showed them to a room for the night. He did ask Ranma to come back and stay again sometime, on the grounds that he had a lot of things around the temple that he could not get done alone, and Ranma has said he may be looking for a place to stay. Ranma thanked him for his hospitality and early in the morning, when the dew was still covering the ground, they left to finish their trip to Nerima

They turned the last corner and down at the end of the block was an old familiar manor. The Tendo Dojo. Ranma sighed and wondered how this would go. They were family to him but he was not the same person as before china. He felt so much older than the time that must have passed before he came back. Looking at himself Ranma thought it could only have been a few days he thought but to him it was so long. It was just odd that he really could not figure out how long he had been in the Realm. Sometimes he felt that he did everything all at once, that time itself was not a factor there. That he had learned under Val 'En at the same time as watching him return to his home while at the same time being given Cassy as reward for serving Kosh "**"time for being his avatar.

He looked over at his daughter though and smiled softly. She was his pride and joy. She was proof to him that everyone had a choice. She was a Succubus, a demon and she chose to not give into her nature, and maintain a good and honest heart. She gave him hope that even his own karma could be avoided beaten and that only he really could choose what happened to him.

'Maybe that was why Kosh gifted her to me in the first place. 'Thought Ranma

Cassy looked around expectantly. She has heard stories of this place from Ranma and was on the lookout for bicycles flying through the air or blind men throwing training potties (she was not sure what those were but they sounded fun) or evil little trolls to be jumping around everywhere. What she found though was calm and serene houses and this deep feeling of a kind energy coming from the house they were walking towards.

As they got to the gate Ranma noticed the sign on the front. "The Tofu heath center"

'Tofu?' He thought. Another much more worn sign hung below it

"Tendo school of Martial arts. Visitors welcome"

Ranma looked at Cassy "Cassy dear, something is odd here, do you mind sitting by the pond over there while I check this out?"

Cassy nodded and started walking around the house where there was a pond. She sat and started looking at the fish, marveling at their movements. Behind her she could hear a "thump thump" noise and she turned startled. She saw two younger children playing with a brightly colored ball that they were throwing it back and forth. One was a boy with dark brown hair, cut short, who wore glasses. The other was a girl who looked much like him, even to be the same age with a lighter brown color to her hair. Cassy had no idea how to judge ages in humans and really would not have cared anyway. They both smiled at Cassy and the girl threw the ball at Cassy.

"You want to play?" asked the girl.

"Sure it sounds fun" smiled Cassy. She never got to play with anyone but daddy and catch was a fun game.

The boy picked himself up a bit "My name is Tamaki Ono" He bowed. "pleased to meet you". And the little girl bowed also "I am Ranko Ono. Welcome to our home"

Cassy smile and bowed back a bit clumsily since she was not used to doing this "I am Cassy Saotome. Pleased to meet you as well" she looked at the pair and tossed the ball back to Ranko "Catch!"

The Three of them continued to play out in the yard. Out of the window upstairs a face watched the scene play out, but she could not hear the voices of the children below..

Ranma knocked on the door, and another girl with the name tag "Akane" in a pin-strippers outfit answered the door.

"Ohh please come in and have a seat." She smiled at Ranma brightly.

Ranma looked at the name tag, and at the girl. There was no chance that this was the same girl, she had light brown ponytails in her hair for one and she was WAY too young. 12 or 13 tops. Ranma nodded and was led into a waiting room, that appeared to be about half of the old living room. There were two couches here and two chairs. The Akane girl handed him a medical form along with a pen and asked him to fill this out while the doctor was finishing up the treatment with her other patient. Ranma idly finished up the form. Most of the questions were standard medical questions, with a few odd questions here or there, though a few were very odd

"Have you eaten anything that seemed to be alive and was either moving away from you or trying to eat you first?." Have been hit on the head with a mallet more than twice week" and last one at least gave him hope that he going to see someone he knew "do you have a water based shape changing curse?"

Ranma filled out the form anyway, and gave the clip board to the pin stripper. She glanced down at the list and turned a little white yelling ""Mom!" One of the doors opened. Ranma looked up into the eyes of an older women, in her mid-thirties who looked at him and said "Ohh My! Ohh My!" No one who knew her had ever heard something to rate TWO "Ohh my' s" together in one breath before. Her eyes rolled back and Ranma watched as an obviously much older Kasumi fainted dead away.

**&^%$##$%^&**

Far into the future in front of the gates Pluto watched them obsessively. Even though the future was safe now, and Crystal Tokyo had come to pass. Even though there has been no sign of danger in over one thousand year's now she continued to watch. Everything she has done has been for one goal, to bring this perfect out come into being. Now there can be no more war. No more events. She could see it in the gates. This unending perfection was here and now. Soon she could rest. Often times the gates simply reflected what the viewer wanted to see.

The gates themselves just kept looping the next 50 years until her death, over and over again. It was all of the future she was going to be able see. Her force of will itself was keeping them from showing her the other major outcome that was possible to come out, one that would change her perfect world before her own end took place.

In crystal Tokyo beauty was the ideal. There were no statues to great battles past. No weapons visible. Even in the court, the guards did not appear armed. The only exception to this was on those yearly visits to the court of Lady Saturn. She always wore her armor, her striking long hair flowing behind her, and carried the Glaive of her office. She would stay exactly one day, a few hours spent talking to the court, the rest of the time spent with Neo-princess Serenity in the main court yard, talking together.

Every year they asked for large amounts of food and drink be brought to them however neither of them ate or drank anything but water during this part of the visits. Their spot of the yearly gathering was on a bench in front of a magnificent crystal statue that seemed out of place in this sanitized crystal realm. The statue was an action scene of a man, with a twisting shape of energy wrapped around him protectively in front of him was a great spider creature that was also carefully carved into the design. In their yearly meeting they would start Saturn would start off sitting on the bench and Serenity would be lounging on a padded love seat that would be brought every year. Everyone thought that Serenity would have a magic in place that even her mother could not penetrate, to ensure they could talk alone. They did not hide their voices; just nothing they said made any sense to anyone else.

At six pm, ever anniversary they would both get up and carefully examine the statue looking over its complete structure. At seven every year the two women would clean the statue by hand, almost reverently. At eight pm they would as one say ""Saiel kos dun anat seowa" and they would stand silent for a time. Around either eight thirty or nine they would sit again, and have wine brought for them, with a different animation of talking. Now was for the first time all day that two old friends were catching up on their year. Even if it was all spoken in that strange language that only they knew the meaning of.

The Queen felt that sometimes she heard parts of those words in her dreams, but she could never understand, or was too afraid to look at its speaker. The dreams she had when that was spoken held eyes of a deep stormy blue, and behind a softer rose tinted pair. She could feel love pulling her from both sets of eyes, pulling her strongly, with other things holding her back. The voices stopped as the light in those eyes would die and fade from her view. Leaving behind only this feeling of great hunger, and blackness. Her dream would always end as the blackness seemed to descend on her with fangs dripping poison on her before plunging to her body.

The Queen had this dream every year. When she awoke, she knew that Saturn would come tomorrow, and she would visit the Queen making her feel small, like the Queen had done something terribly wrong. The Queen knew that then the rest of the day Saturn would spend sitting with the Princess, in the court yard, talking. She knew that a deep sense of shame would occur during that visit, and that for some reason the understanding of that shame would be denied to her, just that she was at fault.

The Queen also felt a coldness radiating from her eldest daughter. She had two, one older one younger, but there was something she should remember about the older one. Every time she started down that line of thought though something pushed her thoughts down and caused her to think about something else. She didn't even know that the younger was never allowed to see the older, or that the older tried so hard to hide from the younger. If she could see things, there would be something serious about how and who the two girls were, and her eldest connection to Lady Saturn. It didn't help the mind wiped queen that she knew both of her daughters names were Usa, or that she was never quite sure which one anyone was talking about at any given moment.

At her precious gates Pluto neither saw nor cared. This was perfection, and it lasted until the end of time. A saner Pluto may have asked or wondered how this could be. They also may have noticed that the vision seemed to be looping over and over again. Sanity had left this Pluto century ago, and there was not one to watch over her to see how her twilight days would bring an Empire to its end.

**&^%$##$%^&**

From the direction of the Dojo, Ranma noted, came a crash and then a brown haired blur in a white gi rushing into the "clinic "the boy looked around, his eyes settling on Ranma and screamed "what did you do to my mother!" Ranma blinked again he also looked to be 12 or 13 and reminded himself of well, Him when he was that age. His movements definitely showed some of the Anything Goes form, though not as clean and precise as Casey's form. It also seemed more grounded to the earth than the Saotome style. From examining him, he would have to say that this style was an actual practiced form of the Tendo School. The pin striped girl turned to the boy and said "Ran-kun, Read this" the boy read this over while Ranma examined them, and thought to himself 'Ran-kun?'

"You have got to be kidding me. Hey Cassie get in here." Ranma yelled out into the yard. Cassie looked up at her playmates, smiled and ran in to see what her daddy wanted. She came into a room with a girl helping an older woman to recover, her daddy just standing there against the wall and a Very pale shaking boy try and get some understanding of what he was reading. The boy slumped back against the wall looking up at her daddy just like she would look up at 3 or 4 denizens of the Thirst.

"You are Ranma?" the boy asked.

"Yes" replied Ranma. "I bet your Ranma too aren't you?"

"Yes. You are back?"

Ranma nods.

"you brought back a wife." The boy looks at Cassy.

Cassy blushes bright red and shakes her head.

"No, she is my daughter"

Ran-kun looks green a bit "Ok why not? A Daughter"

"Yes"

"You look just a little bit older than I am" Ran-kun still continues in shock.

"Certainly does look like it." Ranma was starting to enjoy this. He could see the boys brain starting to melt.

Ran-kun sat all of the way down on the floor. "They ALL said chaos followed him, I never pictured what they meant"

Ran-kun looked at Ranma again.

"You are The Ranma Saotome?" Ran-kun stressed each word.

Cassy piped up "And The Cassy Saotome!" She smiled brightly at this new boy

"Grandmaster of the Anything goes school of martial arts?"

Ranma looked a little surprised at that one. He was not grandmaster that he knew about anyway.

Ran-kun looked over at Cassy, then back to Ranma "The Ranma who killed the God-king Saffron?"

Ranma sighed and shook his head sadly "Yes that one".

Ran-kun could not process anymore it was just too much for him. Brain started partial reboot.

"Nice to meet you Uncle" he said in a daze "I have to go train. Yes train. Training Will help with my dreams. Dreaming is hard." He stumbled back towards the dojo.

Cassie gave her father a look questioning him.

"Yes Cassy, that is a Tendo" Explained Ranma.

"Wow, he seemed… Weird." Replied Cassy.

"You have no idea"

And for the 2nd time this evening, a blur jumped him. An older woman with short brown hair and the eyes of a viper. She was crying, and holding him close.

"Baka, it's really you Damm you Damm you Saotome for leaving me like that."

Ranma blinked "Nabiki?"

And the woman in his arms wailed and cried on the younger boys shoulder.

"So long, you have been gone so long. We all needed you… I needed you so much" Nabiki continued to cry into his shoulder, as Kasumi finally started to come back to the land of the living. Her eyes went from the shock at Ranma's return to the joy at seeing for the first time in 15 years her little sister showing any emotion at all. Their little brother had come back.

"Oh My!"

_**&^%$#!#$%^&**_

**Saiel's light.**

The elder one Saiel only ever chose one to represent her interests. She always selected those who had fought against the corruption of their innocence. Most of the time she would bring those like monks, and the like to serve her avatar.

Her avatar would travel the Realm, seeking those who would corrupt others, and bringing out her amulet, to test them. No evil could stand judgment by her. She resided in the center of the Realm, and her light kept many of the minions of the various dark areas at bay.

Her Avatar did not leave the realm itself, and only served within its borders.

Once her Avatar had served their time, her gift would be bestowed. Most of the time, her gift was rejoining the wheel, with her blessing in their next life. Occasionally however they were released to serve another. Kosh was the main one who would reclaim an avatar who served her, and it was always to send them somewhere outside of the realm, to go and confront the Thirst where ever he sent them.

_Authors notes. _

_Yes the whole thing is being rewritten as I feel some major things were left out the first go around. And I can't logically do chapter 15 until I work them out. Please bear with me, but at least realize that each chapter is going to have quite a bit more information than before._

_At least I am not shortening them. Though I do intend to slow down some of the meetings._


	3. Chapter 2 : who he missed v2

_Update chapter 3.1 Content/grammar (5/)_

**Chapter 2 : What he missed, and who missed him.**

One of the things Usa hated having to stay in her "younger" form was still having to go to school. It's not like she had not only done school in Crystal Tokyo, but she had done this SAME schooling before the last time she came back as a kid. Ever since Usa had her run in with the Hunter named Ranma last night, her mother had been acting weird. Not the usual "Usagi-chan" weird. Or even the Usagi hunts Mamoru weird. This was a NeoQueen Serenity "I have a secret" kind of weird. Usa was still going to try and maintain some idea of Ranma's whereabouts though, and so far felt that the Senshi knew nothing of him yet. They keep having their meetings mostly without Usagi. Other than Hotaru, none of the outers have shown for some time. Usa was tired of these meetings, and frankly would rather be Ranma hunting than dealing with the other Senshi.

Today's meeting was held after school again and it was what finally crossed the line for her. She was sitting talking to Hotaru, and they were deciding to leave this "Meeting" as like the last three meetings this one had degenerated into a Rei, Makoto and Minako bashing on Usagi fest. Add to that the fact that Mamoru was doing NOTHING to defend Usagi and the youngest two were fed up. Ami was keeping quiet and reading though she did give annoyed looks to the others once in a while. Usagi was their friend. She loved her friends unconditionally, and this was how she was going to be treated by them. As the two got up to leave, and Rei had the gall to ask her in her overly sweet voice where she was going.

"Home, I am tired of listening to this crap" snapped Usa.

Rei blew up at this. "No, you're going to tell me where you're going. Your too.."

"I'm too WHAT bitch" said Usa coldly. "Too young to see how much of an ungrateful windbag you are? Too young to see that you think yourself above your station? You are lucky that I don.."

Mamoru cut in angrily "Usa, do not be disrespectful to Rei-chan!"

Usa looked at this man she was rapidly growing to despise. In the future it was common knowledge that he was maintaining many affairs, while her mother was somehow clueless to this fact.

"You depraved excuse for a man. What the HELL are you thinking? You only GET to be king by the grace of my…"

_*Slap*_

Usa holds her face as Rei pulls her hand back. Rei has gone slightly purple in her anger. "Don't you EVER talk to him like that again. He is your father. Don't you forget, you CAN be replaced… it would just be a simple little process for you never to be born"

Usa was furious. She was so angry in fact she could not even respond to Rei. Most of the Scouts other than Rei and Mamoru were stunned.

Ami pulled herself out of what she was reading trying to calm things over. "Rei you really don't mean that"

A very quiet voice was heard saying "She might not mean it, but I mean this." Everyone in the room felt power rolling of one of the youngest Senshi. A purple fire was building around Hotaru, the ghostly image of the glaive in her hands. Then without fanfare or a light show, stood Lady Saturn in her adult form. Purple scaled armor, black underdress, her glaive colored black and silver with purple stones set along it. A silver crown, with purple stones, and long black hair, down past her waist. This was her in her war form, the armor as she would take to war in the future.

"I mean this Rei. I can replace you. I can even replace Him" she said looking over at Mamoru who looked right then decidedly uncomfortable.

"You want to be queen Rei? How would you like to be the Queen of all corpses? I can arrange that for you. I could end all of life, just for you. So you really want to cause the end of what we have DIED for over your selfishness? We ALL owe our lives, you more than once. But you're going to throw her away, and KILL Chibi-Usa over your desire for something that will I will kill you if you try to become."

Saturn dropped the point of the glaive to under Rei's chin. The glaive suddenly had flames flickering along its blade. "Chibi-Usa cannot and will not be replaced. On the other hand you Miss Mars? You're Expendable. And there is not a DAMM thing any of you can do about it."

With that Saturn and Chibi-Usa turned and left.

After a moment Ami got up and left as well. She was not happy with how things were going and resolved this would be her last meeting until the others got their act together.

Rei crumbled to the floor, fear and shame washing over her. She looked at Mamoru who turned away in shame. None of the rest could even look each other in the eyes.

After that the meeting was silent for a long time. It was quite a while until they even had enough strength to leave the meeting to go home to think.

Chibi-Usa however fumed as she left with Saturn. Hotaru changed back to her normal self just as fast as she took the war form on. "Ho-chan, I need to share a secret with you, and you can't tell ANYONE, not the other outers or anyone. Can you do that?"

"Even Setsuna-momma?"

"Especially not Puu. Can you PROMISE me that you can keep this? It's REALLY important, and I have to have someone to talk to about this. With the other scouts acting like children or in some cases whores, I need someone right now."

Hotaru gave Usa a quick hug. "Ok, I promise, no matter what it is I will listen, and help if I can"

Usa sighed "Ok before you make this promise I need to tell you that Puu is a lot of the problem. Still willing?"

Hotaru after a second hugged her again and said "Yes, no matter what it is, I am there for you."

Usa hugged Hotaru hard. "Thank you thank you. I don't like what I am going to tell you but if I don't tell you, really bad things are going to happen."

She dragged Hotaru to the same ice cream shop she had met Ranma the day before and started her story.

Ami saw them head off together, and decided to follow. Without Usa or Hotaru noticing she had overheard part of Usa's conversation so decided to see if she could eaves-drop without them noticing.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

It was only now starting to sink into him. 15 years he had been gone. That may have not meant much to him before. But seeing Ranma Ono, and Ranko Ono, and Nabiki crying made it a lot more believable. It was a lot to take in.

Kasumi had given him a quick if brief rundown. His father was dead. Genma had taken his own life after China. His mother was still alive in Tokyo as far as anyone had heard. No one had talked to her in 4 years though. Soun was dead as well. There was Happosai's declaration of Ranma being grandmaster posthumously. Then he disappeared. So much of his old life had changed. There was at least one good change. Kasumi and Tofu got married. They had four kids, two sets of twins. Nabiki had gone to jail for extortion and was now out of jail. She was currently living with the Ono's, trying to relearn how to be human. Then there was today's events…

One point of annoyance to Ranma, as tears cool off they are no longer hot, and just as Nabiki had cried herself almost to sleep on his lap, Cassy got for the first time to see Ranma's curse. It never triggered once in the Realm. Everyone here however was expecting it, one way or another. This was Cassy's first dance with this. It would be one of many. Ranma's curse needed to warm up to the idea of being back.

"Uhmm Daddy? Does this make you my Mommy too?" Ranma groaned as everyone else laughed at this simple thought.

**&^$%#!#$%^&**

Val 'en looked at the egg on his desk. Kosh had said to keep it, and not let it be born yet. Kosh had given his blessing to Ranma, so Val 'en himself had taken to training Ranma in the Code and helping to develop him. Something about this egg, one of the succubae was going to fit into that somewhere.

Val 'en later went out to watch Dartan teach Ranma sword work. Ranma after much time had finally seen that there was a need for magical weapons when dealing with minions of the Thirst. Dartan was one of the better rapier instructors, and Ranma took to this style like he took to all of the others. What he really excelled at though was knife work. A type 6 thirst, also called a vampire, had turned to the service of Kosh and was the best knife instructor in the Hunt. Even he would not want to have to fight Ranma with knives with Ranma's extensive training in other arts. The Vampires name was Aluc and he was bound to Val 'en, as Val 'en had allowed his surrender and conversion to the hunt. Aluc however never left the hunters realm. Being back in the land of the web was too hard on him.

Ranma continued thrashing on Dartan. While his pure blade work was lesser than Dartan's, his martial abilities made up for it. True there were many things he could or would not do here, but the agility, balance more than made up for it. Ranma seemed to strike at Dartan from impossible angles.

Later that day Val 'en sat with Ranma and talked about the Code more. He talked a long time about Aluc and the relationship between those who are bound. There was a great deal of responsibility between the two, and often if bound were of opposite sexes, it acted almost like a marriage or parental relationship. There was some ability's granted by Kosh to sense what the other was doing, how they were feeling. In some cases even to read each other's minds. That was to maintain that the bound would keep each other on the right path. If either side fell, and refused to come back, the other would have to end them. Ranma was unsure he would ever be able to have that sort of connection to anyone. Val 'en though felt otherwise.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Tofu came back later that night to see his daughter Ranko playing with what looked very much like the Real Ranko's hair. Nabiki was sleeping curled up on Ranko's lap like a lost child. He also saw a very strange and playful looking… well Oni he guessed, who was playing with his youngest boy. Kane-chan was a lot like her mother and had been cleaning trying to make sense of this strangeness. He did not see his Ran-kun anywhere, and as far as he could tell, his wife had the same look she had on her face when she first told him that she was pregnant. In short this was one of the weirdest days he had seen in years.

Tofu sighed "Ranma, welcome back". Tofu kind of slumped into a chair. He really should have expected that one day Ranma would be back. Even the idea of him not aging was not that far out of the normalcy of what could be expected from him. Ranma showing up with a friendly Oni that was something Tofu would not have expected.

"Hey yah Doc. Things sure have quieted down around here." Said Ranma with a perfectly straight voice.

Tofu's eye twitched, "Quieted down.. Yeah" then he remembered how things had been before. "Yeah I guess they have"

Tofu felt his wife put her hands on his shoulders. "Looks like Ranma-kun's returned helped pull Biki-chan out of her room. Since she is out here I should go clean it She has not let me touch it for years now."

Tofu just looked up at her and smile. No matter what the weirdness was, his wife was Kasumi. Nothing else mattered. It was a forgone conclusion that given the chance she would clean or cook when she was stressed

"I'll go help you mom" the voice of Akane was heard. She was so much like her mother.

Later that night Kasumi, Tofu and Ranma sat outside. The kids were all in bed, except for Cassy who was trying her best to learn to live IN the furo. They had put Nabiki in her room, and she fell asleep again almost instantly.

Ranma explained everything he could put into words to them. The fight, being saved by Val 'En. Trained by him to hunt the Thirst. Watching Val 'en returning to his world and becoming the avatar of Kosh. His daughter. Becoming Saiel's avatar, teaching others as her avatar and being brought back into Kosh's service to come home.

Tofu told him about more of the details of what had happened. Nabiki giving into depression at the three members of her family dying almost at the same time. He talked about her depression, leading to her crossing the law. When she had returned to the family, and being a shut in since. Tofu was glad to see any sort of positive movement from her, since she had been shut away these last 4 years. Nabiki had been totally alone in a home full of folks who loved her.

He told Ranma about his mother, who he still saw from time to time. She was alive, in Juuban, and volunteered to work at a few of the shrines in the area. She felt she needed to atone for her sins.

He Also said how after his father was unable to find his body he followed honor for the first time in his life, Or he chose cowardice over anything else. And committed seppuku. In a quiet hotel, without a second and no one heard a sound from him. An honorable samurai death for a honor less samurai.

Soun just wasted away, more from Akane's death than anything else.

Everyone had moved on. Even thought it had taken years. All of his fiancée's were gone and married. As far as Tofu could tell they all had families of their own now.

It was a hard story for either to hear. Ranma was shocked at the loss of the old man, and how Nodoka and Nabiki reacted. There was nothing romantic from him towards Nabiki, but she was family to him so he would be there to be her little brother again. And he needed to find his mother, to help her too. Tofu had told him that no one really knew where she ends up at any given moment as she traveled from shrine to shrine, helping others. Tofu said he did have the keys to the Saotome home though, and had been keeping the place up. Tofu offered to continue to pay for things there, but asked Ranma to do the upkeep and stay there, in case she returned there.

Tofu also said he would sponsor Ranma to attend school again, since if he was back he would need a high school and preferably a college degree to survive in this world. "There is not the constant warfare to need full time superheroes after all." Tofu told Ranma

Kasumi just looked at her clueless husband. How could anyone not know about the Sailor Senshi of love and justice? She yawned and decided she needed to get that Senshi outfit from that "Fredrick's" place that had just opened up to show him what he is missing. Who knows? Maybe she will get another set of twins.

For some reason right then Tofu sort of shuddered, and got this glazed look on his face.

Ranma was too deep in thought for any of that silent interplay.

"Ok, doc I will go take care of my mother's place. And school is probably a good idea for me AND Cassy. We will need to make sure we are in the same classes however. Do you think there is some way we can arrange that?"

"I can check with some of my contacts and see. You're an easy enough one to explain. The "original" Ranma is infamous in the teaching community. I say your another Ranma Saotome back from a long training trip and they will believe anything. Even your curse is well known. I bet we tell them you have a family curse, and you should have less problems than before, and a WHOLE lot more sympathy from the teachers"

Ranma thought about it "Ok we work Cassy into this and we have a deal"

"One Caveat to that Saotome!" the screen door slid open and the older Nabiki stood there. "You OWE me. And I expect you to pay up"

Kasumi was shocked it was like seeing a ghost. Nabiki was back just as she was years ago.

Ranma on the other hand was annoyed and on some level still afraid of this woman. "Alright Nabiki, what do you want, How much is this this going to cost me"

"More cash than you have, so here is the deal. I don't expect you to take me back as fiancée. I don't expect you to treat me as anything but hopefully a sister. But I AM going with you. I am going to live with you, help you and Cassy and…"

She dropped to her knees, her strength and façade broken at the same time "And I am not going to lose you again. You meant the world to me. Too much time and" she started to cry" things have passed, but I will not have you out of my life again. Not when I have a reason to get up again. My sister has her family to take care of her. You need… damm it , I need you to take care of me, you're the last other family I have left…"

Nabiki felt arms slide around her, and she felt instantly comforted. But the voice attached to those arms was not what she expected to hear at all. It was Cassy's voice.

"Aunty Nabs, you are family and you can come live with daddy and me for as long as you want."

Again Nabiki turned into someone and cried on them. Ranma looked at his daughter and smile at her kindness.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Luna looked up at the locked door to her wards bedroom. Usagi had been getting more and more upset, over the last few weeks, but today, today was the worst of them all. To top that all off, Diana has for some reason stopped talking to her. Chibi-Usa growled at her when she got to close to her and Hotaru talking. She had gotten a call from Artemis, saying how the meeting had gone down, but this did not explain the apparent three camps that were forming between the Senshi. Maybe even four if the other Outers broke with Saturn on this. What the hell was going on? This was too much for anyone to have to deal with.

The real thing that was upsetting her was Diana. Like Chibi-Usa, Diana was from the future, and seemed to KNOW something. Something she could not or would not tell Luna about. When Luna tried the "you are my daughter and you will tell me" she got the brush off from Diana. When she pushed harder, Diana pushed back with claws.

So what the hell is going on? The Inners were apparently dancing to Rei's tune right now. This did not include Usagi.

Usagi was blocking them all out.

Usa was pissed at the inners, as was Saturn, enough for Saturn to threaten killing everyone if Rei becomes queen.

Off in her home, Ami was upset at them as well; this was not how friends acted to one another. She needed to talk to Usagi.

Diana knew why Usa was so upset, and she thought why Usa was not confiding in Usagi either.

The outers were missing. No Pluto was missing the other two outers were probably just screwing like bunnies as usual.

And Usagi didn't want anything to do with HER either. It was like she didn't trust her like she didn't trust… ohh no … She didn't trust the folks who were her only friends. That included her.

That did not explain what was going on with Chibi-Usa and Hotaru, but explained everything else from her ward. This was a take a stand moment. Usagi needed to know that she was there for Usagi First, and foremost.

Now what Chibi-Usa and Hotaru' s problem was? That would wait for later since at least THEY defended Usagi. Artemis better choose too, and he better choose right. The Princess needs her advisors, and Luna will make DAMM sure they are there for her.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Usagi could not stop thinking about those two, the boy and girl she saw yesterday. And she could not stop thinking about both how good they looked together and how much guilt and shame she felt looking at them. It was sometime in the night, after she awoke from a dream that drifted away in an instant that this guilt started when thinking about them. Something she did to them was wrong. She did not know what. She did not know where or when but she did it had happened. And it was eating her up inside. She could not see Ranma or Cassy being evil; Usagi just had this deep feeling that she was going to do something horrible, unless she acted. She also got the vague feeling that she should not talk to Pluto about it. Like Pluto was somehow involved. These feelings were just premonitions from her dreams. Kosh had started to show his displeasure in someone who would use his champion in this world then throw them away. It was through dreams he would be communicating these feelings to the intended.

This morning Usagi was miserable. She had started to try and talk to Chibi-Usa about it, but as she started talking about them Chibi-Usa got a shocked look on her face and said she needed to leave, and just walked out on her. The rest of the scouts she could not talk to. And Luna always nagged her so she was probably working with Venus like arty was. That just meant that she was dreadfully alone. Even Hotaru made an excuse on why she would not be around after school.

In the last few weeks now the only real kindness she had felt came from the boy and girl she had just met. She would do anything to have someone to talk to right now. She was just so tired so very tired, depressed and needed to sleep restfully. Tonight and tomorrow she could search again. And again, until she found some reason to stop looking, or found the pair whichever came first..

Luna just curled up in front of the door and waited for the chance to apologize to Usagi, and be there for her. The other useless advisor was on his way over. It may not be MUCH of a faction but Usagi has the full support of the moon cats, if she will forgive them enough to offer it.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

That night Ami dreamt. A sending from Kosh or just her own mind seeing what could come about. Ami stood at this point leaning to Usagi, but she also would possibly then be leaning against Usa. She had a choice to make, and if Usagi listened to her could help avert a disaster.

Lady Mercury looked out on the construction of a ship. She had grown bitter after the Dark moon clan attacked. During the last visit of Lady Saturn to the court, and spending close to 100 years trying to make sense of the snippets of conversation that Saturn and the Neo-princess were having, she had come to the conclusion that they had learned a language that depended partially on telepathy to work. Lady Mercury decided to take her leave of the palace once Saturn left again, to follow her. Lady Mercury had one of the few true stealth vessels that had ever been built so following Saturn was not near as difficult as one might have expected.

When Lady Saturn reached her destination, and Lady Mercury reached the same system Mercury was shocked. All eleven planets of the system were covered in life, cities and communications back and forth. Slowly she tried to move through the system but after only a few hours, she found six ships that had taken up positions around her. A communication was received and Lady Saturn was looking back on the monitor at Lady Mercury.

"Lady Mercury, I take it you have been sent to spy on my trip? I had really expected more from you." Came Saturn's voice from over her speakers.

Lady Mercury composed herself a bit. "Lady Saturn, I chose to follow you on my own. I have been wondering for years now where you go when you are not at court. It appears you have been coming to here?" Answered Lady Mercury.

"Lady Mercury you have placed me in a delicate position. I have to advice the Queen of the Silver Empire whether to have you disposed of, or welcomed. I am not sure personally how I should advise her at present. You could be of help to my family, or you could be a hindrance. "Lady Saturn seemed to intently examine Lady Mercury for body language. "So who do you serve Mercury? Do you serve The Neo-queen, or do you serve Mankind? Are their goals the same or counter to one another."

Lady Mercury knew she was in a no win situation here. She knew about Saturn's Family and their sacrifice. She knew this was why Saturn left Serenity to her own devices when the Dark moon clan attacked. She suspected that the "possession" of the Neo-princess was an act, or more to the point the younger princess had been possessed, not the older one.

Mercury sighed.

"Hotaru, I cannot answer this to your satisfaction. I truly want to help mankind. I don't know if our city is doing this or not. I followed you for my own curiosity not for the chance to report you to anyone. I do not know how to answer you on this."

"Ami if you agree to stay here until I am satisfied I will answer all of your questions. If we decide that you are not a threat, I will let you go. If you are a threat, you will die here. Do you agree to these terms?"

"Hotaru, what choice do I have"

"None"

It took two years. One year waiting for Saturn to make her yearly trip back to the earth. This was done to allay any suspicion that Mercury and Saturn had any link. Another year passed for her return trip to find out from Usa that Serenity had been frantic wondering where Mercury had gone. Saturn told her of the survivors, and in the end Ami chose to stay in the Empire.

Now she was building a ship, one designed to destroy the time gates themselves. If things went wrong, it could even kill her, for if by chance it destroyed the system, her own planet would die, and she could as well.

But she built it anyway. She knew what was coming and to protect the entire race of men, her own life had been forfeit long ago.

As she worked on the time phasing platform, she idly wondered if she would ever see her old friends again. If it was possible to get HER Usagi back from whatever madness that claimed her years ago.

Maybe not in this world then. Maybe in the next.

Ami woke from the dream. Only fragments of it stayed in her mind. But no real conclusions. She wrote as much down as she could remember which was far less than she would have liked and thought about it more. In the end she decided that it was a just a vain hope that there were survivors of the silver millennium out in the reaches of space.

"I should read less science fiction I think before bed"

**Of the Realms of light and dark.**

The Realm was like a great series of rings, not all spread out like other dimensions were. It was a place that existed between points throughout most dimensions. Elder gods that existed long before the gods known to men had been locked into this place. They in turn brought the soon to be dead here, to act as their agents.

At the center of all of this was Saiel, the light against the darkness. She was like a great sun that gave off a cool light. She only had one agent, at any given time. Saiel's Avatar would travel through the realms of Light, and teach the others to remind them what they are doing, and why. She shown as the great counter to the being known as the Dreamer

At the edge was Kosh's realm. The hunt of the Grey lands. Several city sized compounds existed that, and their job was to keep the Hunger of life, or the minions of the thirst at bay. The avatar of Kosh lead the great hunts, hunts designed to eliminate greater beings of the dark on the opposite side of the shell.

IF you were on the side of the dark looking in the same structure would be seen, a series of circles with The Dreamer at its core. The dreamer kept no avatar, not underlings. He travels all dimensions, looking for souls to steal in the nightmares of others. At the outer most rings was the Old one Ungoll. It had once been like Saiel, a star shining in the light. But it turned, and brought beings to itself to push the darkness out, farther into lights territory. It fell, seeking to become a god unto itself, and became lord of the web. The Web permeates the perimeter of the Darkness around the Realm. Almost nothing has been able to penetrate the web in its entirety, so the elder beings farther in have no followers, or avatars, just empty space. This puts Ungoll as one of the most powerful of dark beings.

_Authors notes._

_Rewrite of this chapter._


	4. Chapter 3 Time wounds all heels v2

**Updated version of this chapter. Inconsistencies will be developed/resolved as I move through each chapter.**

_A note about referring to Pluto's from various times and timelines. Setsuna will always be the one from the time of this story. The Final Pluto will always be referred to as Lady Pluto. Any other ones from other times or timelines will just be called Pluto_

**Chapter 3 Time wounds all heels.**

As Nabiki, Akane and Cassy prepared things for the move to the Saotome residence Ranma was stretching in the Dojo. Not Ran-kun the younger for once. Ranma the older. Shifting his neck and back to snap the kinks out he started slowly to move through some of his Kata's. This was something that he had not done realistically in fifteen years. It was not that he was out of shape. It was that for fifteen years he had other priorities than practicing something that was not really ever designed to be used in true combat. Now was for him to return somewhat to the Art, not just the Do.

His body though, still had the memory of 15 years ago, and he flowed back into the Kata's like water through a spring.

Kasumi was busy preparing a breakfast that would meet the needs of her own family, and the two new Saotome's. While she had not seen Cassy eat yet per se, she knew Ranma's appetite, and any daughter of his had to have a need for tremendous amounts of food. Cassy of course did, but she had been feeding from holding her daddies' hand all night, so food was not at the top of her needs list. (Visiting that wonderful "furo thing" on the other hand….)

Tofu, Ranma the younger and Ranko all sat enraptured watching Ranma move through his Kata's. Tofu had told them that the Saotome style of the school was a thing of beauty, like a typhoon moving across a sea of crystal. But nothing could really prepare the two children for seeing they style in its true form. The younger Ranma, heir to the Tendo branch could see why the Grandmaster was the GRANDMASTER. He had seen grandfather Happosai on two occasions and both times he was amazing. His uncle Ranma however took things to a whole new level.

Ranko had practiced some of the family's art, but she had always thought it was too plodding and grounded. She more than anything else wanted to take up wings and fly. This side of the art made you think it was possible.

Ranma completed his morning forms and literally floated a moment in the air calming himself. Then lowering himself to the ground he called out

"Siet kol eil dan, Cassy" he called out.

Up in Nabiki's room, Cassy heard her father's call and made a slight bow to the other two women who were packing. They both watched as she opened the window (Nabiki thought to herself that Cassy must have inherited her father's showiness to make a jum…. What?). Cassy unfurled her black leathery wings and jumped out of the window, gliding down and alighting in front of her father who promptly batted her on her head lightly. Cassy winced and smiled up at his as her wings shifted back into hiding.

"Gozen lar?" she asked with a very impish smile

"Gozen kushu" smiled her father at her.

The both turned to the sun, which was partially hidden by the incoming clouds of this almost grey morning. Ranma had to turn his eyes away slightly as he bowed, but Cassy could look directly at the sun as they spoke

"Saiel kos dun" and then both bowed

Ranma stood back as Cassy started her beginning Katas, all basic Saotome movements. Where her father was this force of nature, with power dancing off of every movement, Cassy was like a piece of silk blowing in the wind. Smooth, drifting and magical. Ranko moved slightly to try and mirror some of the movements, She had never seen anything so beautiful as this exotic dancer, floating across the ground. Cassy used no cheats, no wings or magic to move through her art, just a serene beauty and simplicity of form that rivaled any work of art they had ever seen. Ranma Ono was enraptured by the older girl's movements. In the coming years, he would always stand amazed both by Ranma's power and grace, and Cassy taking the beauty of the art to unreachable levels.

**&^%$#!#$%&*&**

Ranma danced around the type one, a pair of curved daggers in his hands. This was the last of four he had been fighting. They had crossed the border a few hours ago, and were nesting. The rest of his team was busy destroying the nest, and breaking the bonds of the webs that encompassed the area. Ranma was thoroughly enjoying himself when the first part of his team fell.

The nesting force was being led by a type five. The best description that could be made for what a type five was is a Zombie. It consumed the living mindlessly and then those that fell became type the lesser type fours. Those were like zombies if they survived long enough without advancing they would be nothing more than bones, animated and seeking to advance. One that could not spread on its own.

Ranma watch Redshir fall, and after a moment or two raise himself up, and slowly move to consume the rest. This hunt was not set up to deal with the type four, it was an anti-nesting party led nominally by Dartan.

Dartan signaled for retreat, and almost everyone joined him. Ranma stayed behind to plug the gap, to slow the advance of the type four and type five.

Weaving back and forth dancing between the slower moving thirsts, he eventually destroyed the five and was seriously damaging the type four. Had the fight continued as it was, eventually he would have taken the four down as well. The reinforced hunt returned led by Val 'en. Val 'en was amazed at just how much he had damaged the type four. With the help was of team the four type was destroyed quickly.

'I should start his instruction in magic now. HE is ready to see how good he is at it.' Thought Val 'en to himself.

Two weeks later Val 'en just shook his head as Sarum tried once again to teach Ranma one of the more useful magical attacks. Where Ranma could master quickly any of the physical forms and appeared to be as good with the spiritual attacks, Magic however? It was like trying to teach an elephant to fly. So far it was only with great difficulty that he was able to learn any magic at all. He could call forth a light, and he could muffle his own sounds. He did seem surprising good at summoning food, thought Val 'En thought this was more due to innate desire than anything else. The last spell he seemed to be able to cast, was one that few other could cast, but he seemed to take it it. Soul Binding. There was not much call for that spell other than to capture higher orders of the thirst, trapping them into crystals for transporting them. It was generally used to bring back forces to teach hunters some of the more advanced hunting tactics, or teams how to work together in bringing down type six or better.

From Kosh came the general feeling that Ranma's ability to learn the binding spell was a gift from him. There would come a time that Ranma would be in need of this ability.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Cassy finished her basic kata's and ran over to hug her Daddy. Where they saw an innocent expression of emotion from the girl, Ranma and her knew she had pushed herself a little more than usual, since she had a family audience, and was replacing her energy from that hug. If they had been alone she would have showered her father's neck with kisses, to expedite the transfer. Ranma just petted her back,

"Very good Cassy, those forms were almost perfect. Once we get settled we will start in on the advanced forms again"

Cassy almost frowned at this, still clinging to her father. The advanced forms were much harder than these. Sometimes it took her hours to recover from them, needing both touch and rest afterwards.

"Does the new home have a Furo?" she asked him.

"I am sure it does, Why you don't go use this houses furo while we eat breakfast?" he replied.

She almost squealed and ran off dashing for the bathroom.

Tofu looked at him. "She moved to the furo almost like you used to move to food."

"To her, there are similarities. She is the only one of her kind that can bear water, so she relishes in it. Add to that a deep soak, and it's almost like she has a little slice of Saiels home to herself."

Tofu was lost in thought for a moment. "You keep saying her kind, Ranma. She looks sort of human but there are differences. What is she if you don't mind me asking?"

"She is a demon" he replied. At this, Ranma Ono had stopped in his quiet move towards sneaking to peek on Cassy in the furo. "A Succubus to be exact. She is completely innocent of this things her kind would consider their 'Nature' or their 'right' of which I am glad. Kosh made me take a vow that if she ever fell to her evil side, as her father it would be my duty to end her existence. It's why she only ever feeds on me, and why I would kill rather than have anyone be allowed to corrupt her. No one should ever have to kill their own child" Ranma looked darkly at this.

Ranma Ono grew a little white at that. He had inherited some of his fathers and uncles traits with women, but far more hormones than either. Death however of his new cousin was not something he wanted to think about. He went up to his room and dressed, making ready for food and school.

A short while later, Nabiki and Akane came down with a couple of bags. The rest of her things were packed up, and ready to have them be transported later. While they ate, Cassy lay in the perfection she had found here in the furo. Only her daddy's hugs felt better than this to her.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Picture if you will yourself, walking up to a doorway. If you look behind yourself you an image of yourself also walking to the door. You step in side, you know on the other side of that door is an image of yourself, at the door, deciding to open the door or not. You walk down the hallway and look behind yourself. There is an image of you deciding if you're going to walk down the hallways or not. You turn the corner and take a step. Behind you is another image, deciding if you're turning the corner or not. In front of you stands a huge man with a hockey mask and a machete. Now you have a choice, Should you tell yourself not to turn the corner? Or walk down the hall? Or open the door? Or come in the house in the first place? Which of these will result in the best outcome for you?

This is the hell that Pluto resides in.

The closer you get to that corner, the less chances you have to fix your own death. If you turn away at the corner will the man follow you? If you don't go down the hall? If you don't open the door at all?

Now know that beyond the man with the machete, is something you desperately need. Only one correct ending here. Get beyond the man, how many variations though can lead up to that point? How many branches back which ones are the best possibilities for you to get past that man?

This also is the hell Pluto resides in. How does she face knowing what her goals are, and which paths should she take to best get her there. Hell, how did she know in the first place that something she needed desperately was beyond the man in the first place.

Pluto exists like a shattered mirror then starts form the top down, billions of cracks that merge down into a single point. This is why she almost never argues with her future self. Because in the end, that single point is her own end, it's what the outcome is going to be, or at least the outcome that she is looking to get too. Unless it isn't, due to telling herself not to go in the house to begin with. Or perhaps to come back with an army and to take the precious object beyond the man.

One thing you have to remember about the Pluto's from any time is that Setsuna could only let her guard down and be open to herself. Each future Pluto, could talk to each past Pluto and pass along what they needed to do and know, to bring about happiness. As they got farther along though, and drew closer to the end of the line, it was those Pluto's who only saw crystal Tokyo itself that directed Pluto's in the past towards this end. The Lady Pluto who would still talk to the younger ones was only a century or so before the complete collapse into obsession and about a few centuries before the end of the line. She could only see minute chances of drift from her eventual goal, some 500 years from this point.

To Setsuna, the future had become a funnel. All points were stable enough that they mostly ended in this perfection of crystal Tokyo, spiraling down around the edges of the funnel until passing through to the infinite straw of the great city. There were chances of different outcomes, mostly minuet. The one with the highest chance of ending in some other way involved either of two events. Serenity and Setsuna having a complete physical and magical confrontation over "something" relatively soon. The other was Chibi-Usa overthrowing her mother after some other event took place, far in the future using massive ships to burn the skies and to turn the start of what would be the crystal palace to slag. Those both were very small chances, both relating to something or someone, but all communication of who or what it was seemed to be unable to be passed back and forth in the time line.

Now there was a third option that while did not end crystal Tokyo, could have severe ramifications, in some even leading to the assassination of Serenity the fifth, and disappearance of serenity the sixth, Ending the rule of the crystal queens. This one lead to a dreadful war, that left the entire system gutted.

It was from this vantage point that Setsuna saw the first signs of that crack forming, that she really had not seen in centuries. She started passing the information back until a cause could be found. It was the Pluto 200 years along the line of the crack stopped being unstable enough that they could see where this branch started. It was a single Senshi meeting, in our Setsuna's own time. It was the one where Rei called Chibi-Usa "expendable". Quickly (in the nature of time travel however quickly was a very relative term) the information was passed back and forth along the line until Setsuna learned that the Senshi meeting two days ago, had almost brought about the end of Crystal Tokyo and indeed, had the possibility of bringing about the Silence itself.

Pulling herself from her yearly vacation, Setsuna watched the events in the gates enraged. She in part blamed herself. Nothing prior to this showed any issues, and this infatuation with Rei that Mamaru had would have passed, fairly quickly as Rei's anger would have driven him back to Usagi. So to Pluto of a few weeks ago, letting the other scouts use these methods to help train Usagi into a more detached leadership would only benefit them in the long run. She was not expecting THIS to have happened. Chibi-Usa calling on the power of her station, and her own Firefly developing Teeth. Big nasty teeth. Also Saturn's mode of dress was something new. She had never shown that armor before, in the past anyway. Her future selves said it was a more common occurrence in the future, but that did not seem to be a threat of any kind, so was irrelevant to the flow of events.

The Pluto of 50 years subjective did tell her that this in the end was resolved though there would be trust issues that would continue for centuries after this, mostly between Usagi and herself. No amount of searching from any of the Pluto's could lock on WHY those issues took place, the event that caused the trust problems seemed to be clouded form them. Those Far from subjective did say that after the great freeze something else occurred that caused Usagi to trust Pluto again, though she seemed to have lost much of her focus and royalty. She seemed after that to be more like her current self, clumsy, innocent and more well-meaning than the competent ruler Pluto hoped for. A needed trade for the Pluto's of that time forward. Subjective Pluto and many farther along felt they had an idea what had happened, but kept quiet on this. So Pluto Subjective examined the events and tried to come up with the least damaging scenario for the re-uniting of the Senshi.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Haruka and Michiru were on a cruise boat, sailing around Australia on its way to Los Angeles. They knew nothing of the events.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Usagi's dream kept being nightmares for her. She awoke to have both Luna and Artemis lying on her bed with her. Been in the middle of the night last night that the cats appeared at her door tiring to get in. They bowed (in their kitty bodies) before her begging her forgiveness and saying they are and will always be her advisors and her friends. Even if the rest of the scouts left her. Usagi ate and was leaving for school when as she opened the door, she saw Ami who sat on the steps in front of her house, waiting for her.

Ami had watched the events of the meetings leading up to the last one but prior to this last one did not think a lot of them. All she had to do to make sure in her mind that everything was going to be fine was to see that Chibi-Usa was still there. With her presence, everything would work itself out eventually. What she saw in the last meeting though, caused her to reprioritize her feeling. Usagi was her Queen, and her friend. She owed Usagi. Her life and showing her on many levels what it meant to BE alive. Hotaru threatened to use the Silence itself over the events going on. Rei was her friend yes, but that did not mean she felt that Rei was right on this. No in fact she felt Rei was dead wrong. Mamaru was living up to everything she saw from her own father and men in general. At best he was an annoyance. At worst? Well he was at worst then.

After the meeting yesterday, she decided to take things into her own hands and approach Usagi herself.

Usagi just looked up at Ami with a mixture of annoyance and pain.

They started walking in silence.

"Usagi" Ami broke the silence. "I am sorry. I never should have stood by when they were turning on you. Please forgive me" Ami said looking down at the ground.

Usagi felt her normal compassion towards her friend but also great amounts of pain.

"Why, Why didn't you stand up for me. Was I not good enough for you?"

"No that was not it at all. I thought this would blow over, because well, because I was selfish and didn't want to have to fight. I thought that because Chibi-Usa was still here, that everything would be all right given time. But given time, did not mean that it was done right. You always told us to be warriors of Truth and love. We as a group showed you neither."

Usagi stopped and put her arms around her friend, hugging her.

"Thank you Ami, thank you for coming back and I forgive you" she replied to her. Both girls had started crying softly, and Ami hugged Usagi tightly.

"I can't image not having you as my friend Usagi. I won't turn on you again."

They continued to walk hand in hand towards their school. As they walked she noticed that one of the houses she had never seen much movement in it, had a new sign out in front

"The Saotome residence"

For some reason she felt she should have recognized that name more. And that name brought her great sadness.

Ami looked at the house, and the sign. "I wonder if they are related to my aunt No-obisan. She is a Saotome."

Usagi was too lost in thoughts to process that. It would not be until on their way home that she would make that statement have any meaning in her world. It would be after school when she took off rapidly alone that she would see a boy with a familiar pony-tale carrying bags of food into that house, with the cute girl by his side.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Nabiki, Ranma and Cassy walked into the Saotome home, in the mid-morning after leaving the Ono's they started preparing the house for use again. White sheets covered furniture, dust was in odd places and there was much work to be done. Cassy was most distressed that the furo was empty, dirty and looked like it had not been used in years. In fact it had not. Ranma showed her how to clean it and set her to work on it, since she was the one who would live in it if it were possible for her to do so. Ranma prepared his old room for Cassy and himself, while Nabiki prepared one of the guest rooms for use. All in all it was a busy day. They had eaten prepared Bentos that Kasumi sent with them, and continued the cleaning of the house. In the later afternoon, Ranma and Cassy waved goodbye to Nabiki and went to go get food for dinner.

Hand in hand they walked, Cassy again feeding on her daddy. It took a lot of work to do what they did today, and she was tired. Various food places caused Ranma's stomach to growl, but he was on a mission, Food for the house, and some more cleaning supplies.

"I hope we can meet grandmother soon" Cassy said to Ranma.

"Yeah seeing mom would be nice, but surprise may not cause the best of initial reactions. To be honest, I am glad that Nabs is with us. It will make the meeting a lot smoother than it could be."

A flurry of more questions erupted form the girl as she asked about every little thing they passed, excitedly. No deep discussions here, just the wonder of a child in a place full of sights and sounds she had never seen before. They passed a doll store, filled with meter tall dolls, dressed in lace and ruffles. Ranma had almost no knowledge of these dolls, of course. But at Cassy's insisting they entered, and the tall thin shopkeeper who called himself Shirosaki Laplace, and her talked about the Dolls for what seemed hours. In the end, Shirosaki said that if she came back he would give her a doll that needed a good home. Cassy was Very excited by this. Ranma smiled at his daughter of course, but realized that they needed to get home, so they could continue to work.

"Cassy it's not fair for us to leave everything to Nabs is it?"

"No, I guess not Ranma" she sighed.

So they left the shop and continued back home. As they reached the front gate, they heard a girls voice saying "You, what are you doing here!"

They both turned around, and there was a blond girl with a weird hairstyle standing across the street.

Ranma went into his trademark Smirk.

"Hey Cassy look, it's the cheerleader that we met the other night."

Usagi's mind did two things at once. It sort of leapt for joy that he remembered him and was not angry with her (rationally she still did not know how she had betrayed him) and then it crashed thinking 'Cheerleader?" He KNOWS about Sailor moon?

"Hey girl I don't think I got your 'street name'" Ranma's smirk grew bigger.

"uhmm Usagi, Usagi Tsukino, sorry about this." She smiled somewhat bashfully back at the couple across the street.

Ranma recognized the name but the girl that bought the ice cream for them, had a lovely Red hair. She must be related somehow. An older cousin? Maybe he should give her a call and talk to Usa.

Cassy thought for a moment, looking at the girl who has said before her name was "Moon'. So she looked at her and asked "you want to share some cookies with us?"

"Cookies?" Usagi just drooled.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Kosh appeared before Val 'en. The glowing light that Kosh assumed as always was blinding, with an energy that rolled off him in the shape of wings. Val 'En was always in awe of Kosh's form, though not as bright as Saiel's light he still shown bright.

_*** Avatar***_ the thought came from Kosh _***I have a task for you***_

"yes my lord" answered Val 'En.

*_**It is Time for you to bring the egg of the Thirst to life. Allow it to grow into a young form then lock it away, held in chains until he who will bind it agrees to be bound to her.***_

"Are you referring to Ranma, my Lord?" Asked Kosh. While many would never even ask Kosh when given instruction, his avatar was allowed understanding as well. "A Binding is a serious responsibility. I have not heard of a Succubus being bound to a hunter before."

_***This will be the first. Remember you were only the second to have had a Vampire bound to a hunter. He will need her if he survives, in ways that he cannot as yet understand. I also allow you to begin his training to become my next avatar. Ce'ill trained you far in advance, you shall now train him***_

"that shall be my honor lord. He is an amazing hunter. Both in power and in heart.

_***yes, and he will serve me well. Both here and in his home world. Concentrate on the compassion of the code and training of hunters. I believe my sister will take him after me and reinforce his training abilitys.***_

"This shall be my honor lord."

_***Soon my old friend, Soon. You will be released and let back on to the wheel, with my blessings in your next life. You have earned them***_

"Thank you lord, I grow weary"

_***and Soon you shall rest***_

**Val 'en, The Avatar of Kosh**

Val 'en was born in a future not conceived by those of the dimensions of Senshi, yet he was born human. A great war had begun, that the Earth was ill equipped for. They were new to spacefaring, and a drastic mistake was made when they met one of their earliest contacts among non-humans. Humans in their arrogance had already beaten a weaker race, when they first started expanding. The little realized just how primitive they were compared to most of the elder races

This war was started over a Flag ship of the Memb'r race, encountered a war vessel of the earth. The Memb'r warship showed its respect for the humans in what they considered a peaceful greeting. The humans however, thought it was aggression and attacked the flag ship, without warning. With defenses up the earth ship would have not been able to scratch this ship, but lucky hits disabled the Memb'r ship and even while trying to surrender to the humans, they were destroyed.

This started the war. It was one sided in the extreme. Human system after system fell, until they had reached the home system of Sol.

Val 'en was a human, known by a different name. he was captured and pushed for information. A secret was found on him and the Memb'r just poised as they were to destroy both the earth, and humanity in total just surrendered to the humans without explanation.

Val 'en studied the Memb'r race, for decades, and took to using Val En when he was named a Memb'r in spirit. He lived a long life and near the point of his death he was taken to Kosh's service.

Ce'ill Was the Avatar at this time. He watched Val 'En wake up, and take to fighting the Thirst, very competently from the view point of Ce'ill. He was trained to be an avatar almost since he arrived. Kosh said that though he knew not, Val 'en was a servant of Kosh and hunted a type of thirst in his home world.

On one of his hunts however, his team was destroyed. Several type fours were under the command of a typesix.. The type six was moved by the power and purity of Val 'en while trying to overcome his minions. In the end, the type six surrendered to Kosh, and begged him to teach him

Kosh approved, and on the day he bound himself to Aluc, the vampire, Val 'en became the avatar of Kosh.

_Authors Notes _

_Another update. _


	5. Chapter 4 Spiders and things v2

_Chapter 4.1 update Content/grammar (5/)_

**I don't own anything. You know that. Why do you keep asking me this. **

**Well, I own the OC's of course Kosh, Cassy and thirst and anything else I come up with for OC's**

**But I own nothing else.**

_**Chapter 4 Spiders and things.**_

Nabiki looked up as the two make that three youths entered. A part of her was annoyed that Ranma had somehow found a girl so soon, but knowing him she was a friend rather than girlfriend of some type. Cassy looked at Nabiki and said "We brought her over for cookies." Cassy said this Like that just explained the deep mysteries of life

"Well I hope you're not expecting ME to make them. I cook just north of my sister" realizing what she said both Ranma and her got a pained expression on their face. Usagi was oblivious, as she should be in the face of cookies and asked "what no cookies?" Pout.

Ranma looked over, sort of annoyed but not at the cookies, saying "No, I will make them. I learned at the feet of the master after all."

Cassy looked at him with a thoughtful look on her face "So Happosai's makes cookies? Now I HAVE to meet him"

Ranma and Nabiki both face faulted.

While Ranma was busy making cookies (sugar cookies with peppermint chips) the three females sat talking.

"So" asked Usagi "Are you Ranma's sister he was talking about?"

Nabiki got this gleam in her eye. "I was one of his fiancé's, but he left me for another woman" *crocodile sob* she lowered her head. Nabiki had been feeling alive the last couple of days. She knew it was a façade and that it would crash down again on her at some point. But may as well enjoy it while she could.

"One if his FIANCE"S?" Usagi almost screamed. Then she got this puppy dog look on her face "He left you for another, but here you are to take care of him… How dreamy"

Nabiki _*urked*_ at this. What kind of girl WAS this anyway? To have followed that story and STILL thought it was romantic? Seriously.

Ranma for his part heard the yell and shook his head. Nabiki and he were going to have to have a Chat.

Nabiki thought for a moment. How can I make this girl get to Righteous indignation?.

"Yes, I was _One_ of them" (she empathized the word One)." He had so many of us. Both of my sisters and I. then there was the chef, and the amazon. Ohh and the heiress to a samurai estate. That's not counting the stolen dowries and food of the others who came and left broken hearted. He left us for someone else, and when Saffron took him from her and us all. The next time I see him he has a child, and Saffron is apparently passed on. But I can't be angry at him; I still care for him _Sooo_ deeply. _*sigh*"_ . Nabiki grinned inside. Let her find something to be romantic over THAT one.

By now in the story both of the girls were enraptured, but for vastly different reasons. Cassy knew that she was the daughter he came back with, and had mistakenly thought the word fiancée had something to do with being his sister. She rationalized that since Nabiki WAS Ranma's sister (they both said that after all) then that meant…. Wait that meant she had A LOT more family to meet.

Usagi looked at Nabiki and wept silent tears. Nabiki was sure she gotten Usagi with that one, but she was in for a rude awakening. Usagi's line of thought was that since Ranma had left to go be with this Saffron girl, and came back with a daughter to Nabiki And that Cassy could not be Ranma's child Nabiki was referring too either. Since she was not his the child she was talking about Then there must be ANOTHER child running around She got an image of a Chibi-Ranma running around somewhere that she had not met yet. It also meant that Ranma must have been deeply in love with Nabiki just as she must have been with him. Whatever else had happened that happened to his wife Saffron, Ranma had come back to Nabiki, instead of any of the other Fiancée's he had. Add to that Usagi was SURE Ranma was a nice guy and he was obviously showing love to Cassy she had finally worked out the family dynamic here.

Cassy was Chibi-Ranma's sister and both were Ranma's children. Cassy must have been adopted though since she was the same age as Ranma. Nabiki was Ranma's lover. Ranma was a widower, and there was some sort of Chibi-Ranma around here somewhere, which is why Ranma learned to make cookies form the cookie master himself Happosai. Yes this all made perfect sense to her, so since that was the case, her next goal would be "To find Happosai and eat his, ere learn to make his cookies!" Usagi exclaimed loudly.

Nabiki was not sure how she had gotten to that, but felt it deserve hitting her head on the table in front of her anyway. Off in the distance they could hear a couple of pans being dropped and a "WHAT?" being yelled from the kitchen.

After cookies had finished and some misunderstandings about whom and what certain perverted troll was the four continued talking, this time mostly to Ranma's embarrassment. Nabiki was telling stories about how he was and the chaos that he had spread in Tokyo growing up. In typical Usagi fashion she felt her heart go out to them over Akane's death and mentally vowed that if some being like Saffron ever tried to harm any of her friends, Sailor Moon would be placing a tiara someplace uncomfortable in them.

It had turned late in the day when they all finally stopped talking, and she now firmly considered them all friends. Cassy (meaning Ranma of course) offered to walk home with her, since it was now turning into the twilight hours. Who knew what lay out there in the Shadows? As they all left together, Nabiki went into the Furo to soak, and felt depressed again.

"Now how is this different from before? Really." She said aloud to herself. "He loves me like a sister, and I can't make him do more than that. I am his older friend, close one that he lives with and takes care of. I owe him, one way or another I will pay him back" She dropped her face into the water part way. 'Just please don't pick her Ranma, she isn't good enough for you' she thought a moment 'then again really, who is?'

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Usagi was in a good mood when she finished walking into her bedroom door. She thought she was going to get a lecture for being out and missing dinner, but they saw Ranma and Cassy, and her mother Ikuko spent some time talking to the three of them and seemed to relax. He was certainly nicer and better for her than that Chiba boy. Hell he was even her own age. She had shuddered when her mother brought that up and Ranma turned away from her to hide his annoyance. Cassy thought the whole thing amusing but it was obvious to everyone that she really did not understand what Ikuko-san was suggesting.

Ranma and Cassy politely made their goodbyes and left, leaving Ikuko to ask Usagi come more pointed questions. It was then she found out about Ranma living with his older sister, and that one of the things he was doing in this part of Tokyo was looking for his mother who had disappeared to work in shrines. Ikuko got thoughtful about this. She DID know of a No-chan who worked on a volunteer basis for several of the shrines, and suggested that Usagi talk to her friend Rei about it. When she noticed Usagi had gotten uncomfortable about talking to Rei, she offered to talk to the Hino priest, since she was going up that direction anyway some idle talk later and Usagi, with a fairly big smile on her mouth went up to her room. It dropped however when she saw Hotaru and Usa sitting on her bed, with the two cats nowhere to be seen. Both young girls had a glare on their faces.

"Mother, we need to talk." Usagi could not decide if she was annoyed or screwed by that statement.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Val 'en watched as the 6 hunters passed the egg from hand to hand in a circle. It was a a tricky thing to wake a succubus. Usually to wake one from an egg, it required the life force in total of a soul to feed it enough to get past the shell. By spreading this out, they were able to split the load. When one was too tired, they could bring in another person to hold that spot. Eventually however, the egg cracked and a miniature woman crawled out.

Again this small child was passed from hunter to hunter, and she was allowed to feed off of them. They did this for several days allowing her to grow from the life force of many of the hunters, until she reached an age about the same as Ranma. Val 'en knew this was the age she needed to be at.

This succubus was similar to the rest of her kind. Vicious and demanding. She drank life force like water, and had just started to reach the dangerous levels when Val 'En ended her feeding, and had her chained to the wall in one of the holding pens. She would stay there, without food for a long time, growing more and more wild with each day. Val 'en would have preferred just to kill her out of hand, but Kosh had other needs for her.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Ranko Ono sighed one more time that night. She REALLY wanted to learn the main style of the school, or at least the Saotome school of it. It was amazing how both Uncle and Cassy had danced in the air. "Why? It's not fair. I don't even LIKE the Tendo School. No grace at all." Was all she could think to herself She went over in her mind the parts of the kata she could remember and practice them. Part of her wanted to hunt her uncle down and BEG him to teach her the style. She had talked to her mother about it, who told her that when she was ready, really ready, then he would show up and whisk her away to be trained.

Then her mother told her about all of the bad sides of the school that Ranma went through to get to where he was. She talked about how Genma basically tortured him growing up. The Neko-ken, speed training with food. Or running carrying Genma away from wolves. Having to swim to china, and Australia. The constant warfare with rivals and fiancées. How Kasumi had been surprised every day when she finished breakfast each morning and that Ranma never killed anyone.

She said she had never met a more tolerant person. She also said that if Ranko learning the style meant any of that, Kasumi would have to take Ranko back. This was all assuming of course that Ranma wanted a student to begin with. Kasumi said she would at some point bring this up with Ranma, to see if this would be possible for her daughter.

Ranko was at least happy with that thought, and is seemed to infect her dreams after that.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Ranko was almost flying. She had mastered the art of staying high in the cyclones that her Sensei created. She was also learning the Soul of Ice so she could start to form them herself. The freedom, the wonderful feeling of dancing on the winds. It was almost more than she could bear.

She could see Cassy, balancing on the edges of the cyclone. That was much harder, than being in the center. Took far more concentration. The one thing in Cassy's favor was that she could feed directly on the cyclone itself, it being a manifestation of Ranma's chi to begin with.

She noticed however that Cassy looked. Well she looked different in her dream. Her mind knew that Cassy was there, but here was an image of a different girl, one with deep red hair. Still she knew it was Cassy, and she knew that she loved that person as much as she loved her own family.

Below the cyclone were two more women, who were sparing and her uncle who was just moving his arms, to keep the cyclone going. One of the girls had a long brown pony tail and the other was smaller, with a deep black hair. Some part of her mind thought it odd that he only taught girls his style, and it was right on the edge of her mind why he chose to do that. She knew he also taught the Tendo school, but that was to males. His male student could be hit by trucks and not be hurt, it seemed. Two different polarities, of the same art.

But what did she care, She was flying. It was the best feeling she had ever had.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Ranma and Cassy continued walking home. As evenings in Tokyo it would have been considered an eventful one, but for Ranma and Cassy it would have just been a nice walk. Twice on the way home someone tried to "bother" Cassy, with both times Ranma putting an end to that.

Cassy knew the art. When she had formed much of Ranma's knowledge of the art had gone into her creation. Ranma just forbad her from using the art against any living being, other than the things like the Thirst or the like. Humans, even ones that were evil, were off limits to her.

So Ranma dealt with the attackers and left them tied up in nice bows of metal pipe for the police to find. Cassy adding her touch would re-bend some of the pipes into little hearts, giving the police (and one newspaper truck who arrived first) the "wrong" impression that Sailor V was in Tokyo, and perhaps not this sailor Venus they had been covering. Sailor Venus had plenty of chances to do this kind of stuff while she had been in Tokyo, but no one had seen anything like this since London.

When Minako heard at school the next day about how Sailor v/Venus was back to tying up criminals with heat shaped Iron bars, she was well, a lot confused. Add to that she had not seen her advisor in around the last two days, and she wondered if the cat had taken on a new apprentice. Vision of The Emperor Luna and Darth Mau training a new crop of Scout lords popped into her head. To fight the pure and noble Senshi of the silver federation. She then decided that Anakin was not THAT hot, and she needed to stop being quite so Otaku about star wars.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Back in bed at Ranma's house he stared up at the ceiling. Something was bothering him. He could feel something at the edges of his mind, pulling, whispering to him. Cassy of course just snuggled further against him, breathing a soft sigh of "Furo-time". Ranma went back into thinking once some sense of calmness fell upon him. In his mind's eye he looked out and could see the ghostly shapes of the city around him. Half like a memory and half like a vision to move rapidly from one place to another, places he had been to scan, looking for what was out of place. Up he flew to get a better overall view of what he knew of the city, until he could see a point of blackness. A shadow that seemed to be seeping from the edges of reality into this one

"Thirst" he said to himself. "Ulag ceiro thirst" It was a probe, a low level spider type and that it was forming outside of a shrine, that he was sure was the one that he stayed at before. In this view he could

See the flame, and could tell it was the flame that drew the scout to it.

Ranma awoke, and feeling out of sorts Ranma woke up Cassy as well. She looked once at her father and said. "Cerio on voth kal?"

"Yes Cassy let's get ready. A scout has come. Looks like Kosh has a need for us even here."

Ranma had known from the lore, and Code that he had been sent back for a reason. He knew what he needed to do as well. He had just expected more than a day or two to start training others to push back the Minions of the Thirst. In the Realm, training to months, years maybe. Here he needed to train them in weeks, or days, in fighting something that could not be damaged conventionally. He also would need to create special types of magical weapons. Things that those who were trained could use to stop the minions with. It was a formidable task

Ranma dressed in his black and silver one piece, with the silver bracers, put of null space he also pulled a half face mask, to protect his eyes from the toxins as well as allow him to see in the darkness of the being. Cassy wore an almost identical outfit, though hers covered her much more curved that her fathers. For all of her innocence, she was still a grow succubus, and tonight it showed.

Ranma pulled a pair of curved blades, and Cassy pulled a pair of her moon knives from her own null space.

"Ready to go father" she said more formally. These events were serious and she became more so when needed. A part of her mind that Ranma had trained for combat came to the fore; She had been well trained to fight the thirst.

They leapt out of the window and started hopping to the Hino Shrine to put down the errant spider.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

The Inners were not having a good night. Mercury showed up after the call went out but did not look too thrilled about being there. While she analyzed the black spider thing the others tried to fight it in their usual manor finding little luck. All of their attacks for the most part it seemed to ignore. It seemed to slowly be spreading lines of black through the ground, and around buildings. Ignoring what they were dishing out.

Mercury kept finding odd things about the pattern of the black lines, *crap*

"It's a Web! Get out of…" as she watched Jupiter suddenly become wrapped up in it. The others tried to run, but kept slowing down, until the blackness started crawling up their bodies. Jupiter's mouth was covered so she could not scream, but Venus more than made up for it.

Mars was just pissed. This was supposed to be her chance to show leadership, and instead it looked like her teammates were all wrapped up in some weird bondage game. Worse for some reason she seemed unable to do anything about it. She noticed that for some reason Jupiter had almost stopped struggling and Venus's screams seemed to be losing their sharpness. She seemed to think the black thing was moving for her, she should be more afraid. But so tired. Very… blackness seemed to surround her eyes, and fading she saw two black blurs, and just before she blacked out, a great white light, with a familiar voice.

Mercury was frantic. She could see the webs, but still was angry enough at the others that she was just close to them. She watched as they started their attack of the black you…dem… whatever it was. There was nothing in the database about it that was for sure. It did not radiate anything. If anything it read like what she would have felt a Black hole would have read. This emptiness, that pulled everything into it. And it seemed to be getting closer. Mercury looked again at her readings that was not right, the mass had not moved. She pulled away from the computer and said the first thing that came to her mind "They are Webs!"

She watched as her friends started to become ensnared by the bonds. She also knew that any energy that was sent near it fed the damm thing. She ran to get her some space and called the only person she could think of, her Princess.

Ranma and Cassy jumped to the top of another roof and saw a type 1, busy pulling civilians into a web. Cassy looked down, pulling out her knives

"Father, aren't those cheerleaders? Do you think Usagi-chan is down there?"

"No, I don't see her. But that type 1 is there, that is all we should care about."

Cassy nodded and unfurled her wings, with a blade in each hand started in a spinning attack against the webs, trying to reach the center. Ranma, following closely behind tearing through what was in the way, and started to engage the center mass.

"Cassy get the pods!" as Ranma pulled his two short scimitars to twist backwards to slice at the legs snapping in his direction. 'If we were not in a residential area, I could just go power to power with it, but they have civilians here. Crap this is going to suck!' he thought to himself.

Cassy Started to cut open the pods that were scattered around the web. Inside the first one was a human male that had some minor magical aura, wearing a mask. Pull pulled him out and threw him from the web area.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Usa and Hotaru were just about to start their conversation when Usa's pager went off. Hotaru's and Usa's remained strangely quiet. Usagi looked and saw it was Mokoto, and ignored it.

"Mom, There are these rules that I promised Puu the first time she sent me down, that I would follow you know that right?"

Usagi nodded. She wondered idling if she was in the process of making friends with her daughter, or losing her for good.

"I am going to ignore them right now. Something big is going on, bigger than just whatever monster we fight this week is. There is a REALLY big problem with ignoring them though. If I do ignore them, I will almost certainly change the events that happen, making what I tell you, and the risk of breaking the rules irrelevant"

Usagi took a while trying to figure out what she meant by that. In the end she did not get it. "is this new path a bad thing?"

"it could be, it also could not be. We just don't know. What we DO know is the current path is a bad thing, and you are responsible for major bad event.

It was at that point that all 3 cells went off. Instead of Mars this notice was from Mercury. There was an attack just outside of the Hino shire.

"This has to wait until later" breathed Usagi. She really didn't want to be lectured by her daughter anyway. She knew SOMETHING was wrong from her dreams.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

After a quick change they used Usagi's power to teleport to the top of the Hino shrine. She saw Ranma and Cassie finishing off the spider, with Cassy busy trying to pull Minako from the webbing. Tuxedo mask was lying off to the side, as was Jupiter. They seemed only partially functional. Sailor Moon stood there with Chibi-Moon and Saturn. As soon as Cassy got Venus clear, Ranma started laying some energy on the main body and was causing it to more or less dissolve.

The three jumped down, and started pulling others out of the pods. They all seemed drained, so moved them all off to the side. One pod was left, so Ranma and Cassy started to undo it as they were the closest. Moon out of the corner of her eye saw Mar's black hair, and feeling a little vindicated readied herself

"Moon Crystal Healing Evolution!" as she covered everyone that was off to the side in glowing energy partially revitalizing them.

"Moon, What about This girl?, Do you have the power to do that more than once." He asked her. He was angry because he felt he already knew the answer

"Ohh I am sorry, I must have missed her." She replied attempting to appear innocent.

It was at that point that Ranma dropped Rei, who had been in the webs long enough to have her Senshi form drained temporarily.

"Moon, Here is the LAST girl. I guess you must have missed me cutting her out" Ranma sort of glared at her.

"Well thank you sir for helping us out like that. We.." started Moon.

Jupiter looked up with anger.

"We don't NEED any help! We do fine on our own"

"Look Civilian" Ranma replied with some amusement. "You were doing a great job of feeding the spider, but as far as defeating it? Unless you planned on making it fat, I think you needed help".

"Civilian! Who do you think you are?"

"Ranma Saotome, Avatar of the lord of Hunters Kosh, Pleased to meet you." He replied happily smiling at the distraught Jupiter.

Another female voice, older and sounding broken was heard. Attached to this voice an older woman with dull reddish hair and streaks of grey

"Ranma?, your alive?"

"Mom?"

_**&^%$#!#$%^&**_

**Fall of Ungoll**

The being know now as Ungoll really was once two beings. Melko and the spider being originally called Ungalios. Melko was an elder of light, and stood as a gateway between the realms of the living beings and the Realm of the elder gods. There once were many more elder gods, but now only few remained.

Melko' s want for power grew as the part of his dominion grew. He alone controlled the entrances between this world and the world of the mortals. He stood with his servants as judge's weighing the worth of all beings.

Ungalios was a being of great power, which hid in the darkness of the early realms of night. The night was kept at bay by two great beings, the father of all, Kaiel, who was the Gem of the sky, and his mate, Saiel the Star of the night. Kaiel rules over all of the lands of light, and it was rumored served a once and future song, a creating force throughout all dimensions. The original and true divinity. What WAS before there was.

Melko sought to gain preeminence so that he could also hear the song. But the Singer would not hear him. Melko' s jealousy grew and grew over uncounted ages.

Then he encounters the spider. So he hatches a plan. He knew his existence was far beyond the spiders. FAR beyond it. So he engaged in a battle of being, taking its characteristics unto himself. Though much of his overall power was lost in the battle, it was he that was left, not Ungalios. He used his own light to hide his new form from others, and crept up to Kaiel. He murdered Kaiel intending to absorb his power using the abilities of the spider. As he started to drain him, the Singer made his presence known to him.

_***you are not my own, and I send you forth. I strip you of your light and bind you into a hunger for life. You will forever stand at the gates of darkness and forever be denied both my presence and the presence of warmth itself. Only by consuming the souls of others shall you even find memories of light. Your hunger shall never be met, and all you create shall share your curse.**_

_**My curse shall stand until a greater hunger than yours shall as you consumed others consumes you.***_

Melko in his rage changed his name to Ungoll, the thirst. For he thirsts for the souls to remember the momentary warmth of the light.


	6. Chapter 02x Dreaming a quiet ending

"**I own nothing, yes own nothing. I own nothing but certain OC's you See. And by nothing, no money's coming back to me…."**

_**Dream for the future. 02.x**_

_**Three years from now.**_

Another hectic couple of days and 3 women shared a dream. It the only path like anything else but certainly a possible path. All three have connections to time, even if they don't all realize it.

The war had gone long, however it was fought more or less to a stalemate. The Thirst forces were kept in check locking them to the confines of Japan itself. So far they had not opened rifts anywhere else. Ranma and Cassy were working their way across japan, trying to find the center of the disturbance again. Along with the rouge Senshi, they had destroyed much of the power that Ungoll had sent through. Kosh had even restored Ranma's powers to fully become his avatar, on earth rather than the realm. Most of the attacks on the realm had slowed down, once Ungoll realized that he had activated another avatar, both sides were hammered.

As Ranma, Cassy, Usa and Hotaru made it near to the Tokyo tower, they could see what was powering the rest. It was not Ungoll, but a type seven the largest spider type Ranma had ever seen. Communing with Kosh, it was found that the creature was a named one. Something that no one had ever seen away from Ungoll before. Named ones were breakoff direct descendants of Ungoll. Its direct Children as it were. Its goal was to create a new realm of thirst, to add its strength to Ungoll.

During this time, Pluto had twice convinced foreigner powers to use nukes to "protect the world" from what was in Tokyo. Both times failed as the Thirst just drank the energy faster than even the nukes could provide. But then, as the four had fought their way up to the very throne of Shelo, the bottom dropped out of the world.

In space, there are others watching this war on earth. It's a threat to everything if it breaks out of the earth. So great weapon was sent, to stop it. A great cold snapped across the earth. The Senshi of the past, present and those to come all refer to this event as the great freeze. They never understood why it took place though. The powers that sent it, felt that without the local energy to sustain it long enough to spread, then at best it would be only able to have the earth, and that was an acceptable loss for them. Energy dropped worldwide as lakes and seas froze solid. All due to the weapon. Ranma was driven back, as the world slowly froze.

One hundred years past, and again the Thirst started moving again. As did Ranma's Hunters. They had spent the last hundred years trying to preserve survivors, along with the regular Senshi, and an uneasy truce had been put in place by Moon more or less. Pluto poisoned every attempt at Moon and the Neo-princess for some sort of balance. Pluto Needed Ranma and Cassy killed, even now, because he could change what was to be. His views had already infected many of the survivors, enough to question Serenity's leadership. But as it warmed slightly, and the minions of Ungoll started to move again, the main four hunter elders made ready to leave again, to once more try and hunt Shelo down. It was then that Chibi-Usa asked her mother to be present for something special.

In an ice crystal cave, stood a very small group of survivors. Only two from Ranma's time survived and both were present. One was an immortal man named Keitaro, who had proven invaluable in helping with setting up the new communities, and Ranma's niece, Ranko, who was like Ranma a master of both styles of the art. 120 years to the day prior, Keitaro took his fourth wife, and on that day Ranko left the rolls and became Ranko Urashima. Now one hundred and twenty years later, survivors who were special, all of the trained hunters of Kosh, the 4 cat advisors, and Usagi Tsukino all met in this cavern.

Next to Ranma was his daughter Cassy. They both had matured fantastically, and wore the black of Kosh's service, rather than their usual armors, or down time gear. They stood with Cassy slightly behind Ranma, as he looked pensively at the crowd, more or at Usagi than anyone else. Things had been terribly strained for the last hundred years, thanks to Pluto's meddling. Ranma did not want a war with Usagi today. He was pleased she came not as Sailor Moon, nor as Serenity, but as his old friend.

A great light formed behind Ranma, filling the crystal with a flashing radiance. At its arrival, Ranma and Cassy dropped to a knee and spoke softly and reverently to the light. The light reached around the two of them, and happiness radiated filling everyone in the room. Usagi was in awe of this being, who touched them all, even her, so easily. A voice called out from him.

"I call you companions, will you answer?"

The doors to the cave opened, and two beautiful women entered the room. One dressed all in white, sheer dress and sparkling crystals shown under the light The Crown of Crystal, thought lost for many millennia, since queen Serenity the first sat on her head. Usagi could see that it was her daughter, stunningly beautiful in the light, and representing everything that was pure and untouched. The other girl was dressed all in black. Onyx and black diamond's draped on her, empathizing the allure of majesty of the absence of light. An Onyx and black crystal crown adorned her. Her long black hair stood in contrast to Usa-chans dark red hair. They were the image of balanced perfection between them. Usagi was unable to do anything else but what mothers for centuries had always done on their daughter's wedding day. She cried.

They walked together and approached the being made of light.

"You are seeking to join mine as companions?"

As one the two would answer his questions

"Yes, we seek to join you and yours."

"Will you bind your lives to him, your path to his, your thoughts with his?"

"We so bind"

"Will you guard him, and wait for his return should you be parted?"

"Yes"

"Will you place him and yourselves into a new family, one that stands for each other and in my service? "

"Yes my lord"

They both started to glow.

"Even if that service and heart separates you from your old lives, and family. Do you do this willingly and without regret?"

"Yes my lord Kosh" The glow great brighter.

"Will you join with them?"

Ranma now spoke

"Unas Kosh"

"Will you bring them before me and accept their fate as your own?"

"Unas Kosh"

"Then I grant you all my gifts, and my blessing. No one can tear apart what I have joined here. Even death will not end this."

All three responded to this with "Unas Kosh"

"My prophecy concerning my avatars. Dearest ones, you will rid this world of our foe, but in the moment of victory be betrayed by those you love. Together you shall stand motionless through the ages, until the End of Time. Then the end of light and sound shall occur, with only a crystal on you remaining in all of the lands. And you shall come in from far away to reclaim yourself, only then will you meet your own children. As things are this is how things shall be. I hold sorrow for your wait, and joy for your return."

The light encompassed everyone in the room, filling them with hope, happiness and great sorrow.

The dream shifts. Serenity is ranting in her room. She will NOT put her own son-in-law to death. Nor will she wipe his mind. She grabs the crystal and once again screams to herself about not knowing how to remove the powers of one of her "servants" If she pushed JUST hard enough maybe she could figure it out. She keeps examining the crystal, looking deeper and deeper into it. Wait there is a lock, she knows once she gets past that block…

This is the last thing Serenity the fifth ever remembers. In her place the mind of s young, naive and trusting girl is placed. Pluto used another gift from the gates and reverted Usagi to a more "pliable" age. One that trusted her, and would deal with "threats".

The four moved against Shelo itself. It had been a long war, and this was the end. They danced around Shelo, able to use almost every power at their disposal; no one was close enough anymore to be of anything threat. Each strike reduced Shelo, in power and size. They knew how to deal with these minions and not it was only a matter of time until Shelo fell. It could not even retreat, thanks to Saturn destroying the portal. It was not little more than a type 1, smaller than a car, but still faster and deadlier. Usa moved to funnel a new attack into it when she saw what had started to happen and screamed.

Crystal was forming on Ranma's legs. He was being executed by her mother, with one of the oldest and worst punishents. Being forever bound in crystal, seeing and unmoving. They all could see what was happening, but could not stop fighting to do anything about it. Silently, they had to keep trying to end it faster, the crystal reached farther and farther up, as Ranma made a decision. He reached out and grabbed Shelo in his hands, forcing it to be bound into the crystal prison with him. The crystal started forming over Shelo as well. Cassy tried in her desperation, to use herself in her energy form to act as a barrier between the prison and Ranma.

Four minutes later, the prison had formed, and Ranma, Cassy and Shelo were bound forever with it. They would be able to hear, and see but they would never be able to escape, an immortal prison.

In the centuries that followed, a sad reunion was made before the statue every year. It was decided that Usa would stay with him, near the bastards that took him from them, while Hotaru would scour the reaches, to find some sort of cure. On their anniversary however they had a meal ready, in case this was the year, inspected it for cracks, and cleaned and polished his tomb. Then they sat and updated him on their year, and tried as much as they could to feel his presence in the stone, as well as hers. For five hundred years it stayed in this stasis. Kosh for his part reminded Serenity what she had done, every year as well.

Shifts again.

The cry of a newborn is heard, as the new Pluto had been born. With that cry, all of the walls and wards that were in place were lifted all at once. A new portal to the lands of Thirst had opened, and Ungoll itself was at the front of the forces entering into this land. It rapidly reached across Tokyo, pushing all forces aside.

Serenity looked on in horror as she sent out the call for the Senshi. All of them responded except for three. Saturn appeared to once more be out of the system. Pluto was too young, being a newborn. And Chibi-Usa, just did not respond. Serenity was both furious and shamed, at her daughter's abandoning of her in time of crisis. It was as she watched on the monitor the first Senshi fall that a light formed before her eyes.

"Here is your doom. Your karma will be balanced later, but your punishment will be to be given understanding before your execution."

Serenity reached out into her null space for the Ginzuishou, only to find it gone from within her grasp. She could not understand that, it can't be possible for anyone not of the fami… and she realized that her own daughter had taken the crystal, when mankind needed it most. She looked down and slowly the crystal prison formed around her feet. Serenity could see her death approach.

"No protections I will give you, or this child," In serenities arms the newly born Pluto had appeared. She was unable to move, even though the prison was nowhere near complete

"No mercy shall I show. Maybe in time he may release you, but I will not." The light still spoke.

"I free you from your bond. Remember what you lost and know fully what you did."

She remembers it all now, and screams inside. She can see Ranma free, destroying Shelo. She can also see Ranma, and his sons and daughters returning across the portal, bringing an eternal end to Ungoll. A different kind of piece happened. One where there was no rebellion. One that she did not HAVE to remove evil from man, because he was not so resentful as to need it. One where everyone united under her daughter, who rules not only the survivors of this system, and Saturn rules the nearby system where the followers of the silver empire existed. The same refugees that sent the draining weapon to begin with. A bright future in a bleak time that she could not turn back.

"I give you as balance for him. And I pity you. It's his call to release you or not. His alone. May he have mercy on you"

The crystal was starting on her shoulders now, Pluto being completely covered, as she felt herself shift and appear before Ranma's statue, face to face. Then it finished wrapping over her head. From within her crystal, she could see Ranma's statue ripple and shift away.

At the edges of the system, floated a craft specially designed for the reason that it was about to be used for. Lady Saturn stood impassively as the statue of her husband appeared behind her. There were only a few more hours that the earth could stand against the thirst. Then they would spread. The last of the Senshi had fallen, now it was just mop up, with all of those who followed Ranma having left the system weeks ago. They all knew that once Lady Pluto died, she would be reborn, and in that birth, the end would begin. In front of Saturn, lay an open gate that her wife Usa had opened. A direct path to the gates of time. Neither of them was happy at this, but it was the only way they had come up with to resolve the entrance of a true elder being.

Usa placed her hand on Saturn's shoulder and squeezed.

"We will all be together now love. This system is lost, but we have another."

Saturn nods and pulls up her glaive.

At first, nothing, silence wrapped the gates themselves, and they reached across the system, headed towards the sun. as the gates dissolved, the silence grew and grew in power, ripping the outer planets apart with its force.

The ship they stood on shifted half in and out of space to survive the upcoming upheaval.

The shock wave tore Mars apart, and the earth dissolved except for chunks, some of whom were ejected violently from the solar system.

The Chrono-Silence reached the sun. It bulged slightly, and then collapsed back in on itself, creating a greater thirst for the portal to be pulled into. Ungoll itself tried in vain to go back to its own realm. However the new Black hole named Sol proven who the greater hunger was. As Ungoll reached the event horizon, a struggle occurred, and then only Sol remained.

A light on the ship spoke on last time in this realm "It is done" Serenity the 6th, Saturn and two sets of twins girls, one set with red hair and the other set with black hair, matching their mothers, bowed their heads, and turned to look at the statue of Ranma.

Very far from here, the form of serenity the fifth drifted in space at high speeds away from Sol.

The last thing the dreams saw before awakening was the crystal falling off of Ranma and Cassy, leaving only the statue of Shelo behind.

Usagi awoke in shame and terror. Pluto awoke without understanding. And Chibi-Usa of awoke with sadness and hope in her heart. It's only a possible future, but even in this worst of them all, they would still find a way to be together. She leaned over and kissed Saturn's head lightly. "It's ok; we will be together at the end.

**The ranks of Ungol**

There are the names and ranks of the minions of Ungol. It was the Hunters who classified them, to themselves only their hunger decides who is stronger among them,

**Type one**

**Spiders**

Spider beings the weakest of them. They weave the web, and seek to bring nests into the lands of the light. Its through number that they survive and their nest produce many hungry children

**Type two**

**Iraqou,**

Humanoids who travel in colonies and share a hive mind with a queen. They all have 4 arms and 4 legs. They grow from a small size, battling other queens until they gain enough power and grow again. Eventually one queen will travel the web laying billions of eggs, and then eats all of her slaves, becoming a succubus. Its one of the ways to become one.

**Type three**

**Fallen**

These are rare. They are hunters or other beings of light who have turned to the web. Most travel in the company of Vampires or Succubae, and serve them as slaves.

**Type 4**

**Turned.**

These are hunters who have been killed by Zombies, mindless eating machines, incapable of turning other themselves. The oldest of these resemble nothing more than animated skeletons.

**Type 5**

**Zombies.**

These are Fallen who have grown in their own hunger enough to turn on their masters. If they consume their master they are given powers to create their own minions. The seek new hunters most of all so they can advance.

**Type 6 **

**Vampires **

They are the higest form any fallen can ever seek to be. Hunters who are avatars to Named ones. They do not turn others into being like them, they consume others and share their energy with their masters.

**Type 7**

**Demonata**

These are the old judges of souls that Melko used long ago. They hunger, finding flaw in everyone and everything. They are Minor Demons.

**Type 8**

**Succubae**

These are the embodiment of hunger and perversion. They are the strongest being in the realm that are not simply extensions of Ungoll. They are also the toughest of foes. Just being around them drains even an avatar.

**Type 9**

**Named ones.**

These are extensions of Ungoll, broken off from him with one reason to exist. Spread the web into other dimensions. They wage endless war with old avatars of kosh. They share the mind of ungoll and only serve its whims.

**Ungoll**

The reformed elder being who killed the greatest elder of light. Once the judge of souls now it feasts on worlds.


	7. Chapter 5 Ohh the webs we weave v2

_Update v2_

**Ohh the webs we weave.**

At the gates, Pluto met with Pluto to try and resolve a difference of opinion. The argument had gone on for a long time subjectively, and mainly centered on a boy and girl who were needed at this point, but the future wanted sacrificed when he was no longer needed. Current Pluto (who for sake of understanding will be played by the part of Setsuna from this point) could not imagine herself to be as vicious as this. If she believed the Pluto of the future (who will be played by a heartless Senshi named Lady Pluto) then not only must she keep Ranma around, for several centuries, but then just as his last point of usefulness passes she has to force Usagi to get rid of him. Add to that Lady Pluto is telling Setsuna that she has to strip Usagi's personality as well makes Setsuna both question her future self's sanity and makes her very angry at the whole situation.

"How did we get to where she is? I don't understand this at all"

Setsuna knows that Lady Pluto is living in Crystal Tokyo, but is this part of the only path to get there?

This whole concept makes her feel dirty to some levels. She can't talk to the Princess about this right now; everyone knows how she would react. Add to that her future self says that she becomes a threat to Crystal Tokyo herself at one point. How could the Princess become a threat? None of what she is saying makes any sense at all.

Arguing with her future self is always a losing proposition however so she agrees to examine the boy and see if it worth the cost. Some part of her wonders if this makes them as bad as their foes taking some of these stances.

Taking a deep breath she sighed "time to go face him I guess" she spoke idly to the gates. She teleported off to go appear before the scouts, to try to play her odd balancing act she was going to be on.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Mamoru heard the alarm go off, and sat alone in a dark room ignoring it. What was he doing? He had casually dropped off from being involved with a girl who he DID love, and loved him dearly all because he found another girl more forceful and direct. He felt powerful around Rei, that he could tame the war goddess herself. But then there was his own daughter looking down on him for being small and faithless. Was he always going to be like this? She had seen real contempt in Usa's eyes. Was this what he was like in the future?

Darkness fitted Mamoru, at the moment there was really nothing else for him to do. He had not yet decided to act like a man, so he sat like a small child in his room.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

A few moments before.

'A dance of death' was the only way Mercury could logically describe Ranma's actions as he jumped around the spider thing. While his strikes were not doing a lot of damage, she could see black tendrils that could only be described as a fog roll of the thing. She thought it sort of looked like Ranma was fighting some sort of ghost, strikes passing through it, spreading wisps through the air. But as he struck, it was slowly getting smaller, and smaller. Watching the spider dissolve was an amazing process.

Her computer detected a lessening of the webs as well, parts of the webs pulled back with each strike. It could tell every time the creature was actually hit, a small burst of magic was released form the weapons Ranma was wielding.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

At first Val 'en was dispassionate to the creature. Succubae were not things you could generally reason with, nor were they things you suffered to live. What they were doing to her thought was cruelty and nothing more. He started to feel pity towards her.

He left again, after visiting her for the third time that day, and went and found Ranma. They spoke for a long time, about compassion even for your enemies, that it was often more compassionate to end someone, and put them back on the path of the world. He wished Ranma was ready to face the girl. But he was not.

He introduced Ranma to the concept of being One. Joining his spirit and mind with the spirit of Kosh himself. To hear without hearing the will of Kosh, and in time the will and mind of others. He tried and could partially get his mind around it, but Ranma had difficulties with this concept. He was too much an individual.

Afterwards Val 'en went back to watch the succubae. To examine her as she struggled in pain

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

A few minutes later

Sailor Moon watched as Ranma rushed over to the older woman, and helped her too her feet. Most of the scouts were still down, trying hard to recover from the draining effects of the webs.

Ranma threw any pretense at concern aside and hugged his now older mother. Nodoka just looked like she was seeing a ghost, which to her was a fairly accurate description he had been gone so long. She just sank back to her knees and started crying

"no, no. your dead. You cant be here, unless your here to collect me too. Am I done? Can I rest now?" She kept crying

"Uhmm Mom?" Ranma had the decency to look embarrassed. He looked around for Cassy, who was not sure what to do here. Nodoka just kept crying because she had not been able to all of these years.

"Cassy see if you can help them, while I help mom" Ranma told her

Cassy just nodded and turned to help the normal humans first. Each only took a little energy to heal.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

She strained against her chains and screamed, hunger filled her. It consumed her. There was nothing in her but the need. It called her, this need. She would see them walk in and look at her. One who came in often, she could feel Vast amounts of energy. Vast. If she could only reach him, she could feed. If she could reach anyone, anything. But the chains bound her hands, bound her legs. One bound her neck all to this wall that burned her with its touch. Any of that could be endured, but not this all-encompassing hunger.

Primal again she screamed. She could not speak, she had never learned. She could not act, nor could she rest. She never grew accustom to the pain. She possessed not even the spark of awareness now. Just animalist hunger.

Despite this pain, or anything else, her mind could see one thing. Food. It must eat. Must consume the life of others. She could not even die, just feel this over whelming hunger.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Mercury was more or less fine so she continued to scan the area, taking very careful recordings of both Ranma and Cassy. She was positive that Cassy was some sort of demon, her aura proved that. But she lacked the taint that any demons the Mercury computer had on record. Add to that she was helping them all, either at Ranma's command of her own volition made for more interesting data. She would need to talk to this girl, if nothing else to add to her records.

Mercury noted with some surprise that Chibi-Usa and Saturn arrived. There appeared to be some heated words being passed back and forth from mother and daughter, but this was not that unusual. They usually were fighting. That the scouts as a whole had done so poorly on this fight, and no appearance from Pluto was a bit disturbing. Mercury noticed that Saturn had taken a defensive stance standing between the rest of the scouts and the argument between Chibi-Usa and Moon. Saturn seemed to be looking outward with a very sad and guilty look on her face bothered Mercury. She just didn't know what Saturn would feel guilty about other than not making it in time for the fight.

'That must be it, they are angry they were not called' Mercury thought to herself. Satisfied with her own logic, she looked back at her scan.

Her fellow Senshi were groggily trying to get some strength back. Cassy seemed to be flitting from one to another, and as she went to each one, they looked stronger, and more awake. Mercury could detect the life force leaving Cassy, wrapping itself around each of the scouts. It was like the girl was a reverse Succubus or something. Whatever she was doing however it was helping her teammates.

Ranma knelt just holding his mother a moment as she continued to cry to herself. He only looked up a couple of times to make sure Cassy was not overdoing it, if he had been watching better or if moon had not been distracted at that moment, something terrible would have been avoided.

Cassy pushed yet more energy into each of the scouts. She started with the odd man in a mask. Healing him made her feel a little dirty, but he did not take much to heal. A blond girl in orange was next, she also did not take that much but when she got to the brown haired girl in green she started to feel that his was draining her tremendously. With one still left to get too, she was not sure that she would make it long enough to heal them both. The brown haired girl took a lot more out of her than Cassy was expecting She went over to the last scout in red with long black hair. It was taking a tremendous amount of concentration and her life force to heal this last one. Part way through healing Cassy pitched over and passed out

Mars awoke just to feel something very heavy land on her chest. Mars looked down and saw the weight a girl who looked very much like a demon head-butting her. Mars was very weak but she was strong enough to push the girl off. She needed to deal with this demon. It must be the reason she is so tired. In fact she was drained so badly that she can't remember the events of the last few hours. Using every bit of power she has left she summons her flame whip. She pulled back her arm weakly to burn her.

Mercury cried out and jumped to try and stop Mars. She knew that Mars was barely conscious but she was still able to pull up her flame whip. 'This could get bad' thought mercury as she ran towards Mars.

Sailor Moon heard the cry come from Mercury and rushes to get to Cassy as well. She arrives too late to get in front of Mars to stop the flame whip. She was just not able to get there in time.

Ranma felt more than saw Cassy collapse, but as he tried to move to go check on Cassy his mother grabbed him tighter to hold him close. This delay was expected. It was in the plotted events that lead to a specific outcome. It was Sailor moons distraction that was not planned for.

Ranma gently separated himself from his mother, as he turned and saw his daughter lying passed out on the ground. 'She really should learn.." he started to think as he moved towards her. It was then he saw the black haired girl, pulling her arm back with a whip made of flames.

'Crap' Ranma stopped as he started running to his daughter "STOP!" he yelled. He charged her at his best speed, but the second foreseen event occurred. Tuxedo Kamen finally stood up which forced Ranma to move off to the side. He was too late now to stop the whip.

Rei did not hear the stop. To be honest, even if she had she would not have cared. A demon stood in front of her and as both a Senshi and a Miko she WOULD end it or at least send it back to where it came from. She swung the whip forward with what little strength she had, and it wrapped around the unconscious girl. The fires burned Cassy deeply in that moment right as Mars went down again, passing out. Ranma raced to Cassy, trying to feed her, but she seemed not to be taking from him. She needed time to recover, and the Kami only knew how long that would take.

Moon jumped beside her as well. "Saturn, heal her! She saved all of you"

"NO!" Ranma said furiously. "You will kill her if you try". He pulled out a silver necklace that he wore around his neck. On it was a large crystal. Cassy was starting to fade. Around her edges a mist started to form as she was starting to die.

"I hope this works" Ranma said to himself. He placed the crystal on her forehead, and started to speak in low tones.

"Il 'ach vos Kosh. Un "dat vos Kosh. Ungelara vom synoc. Unas El Kosh!" Cassy's body started to turn completely to mist, and appeared to be pulled into the crystal, rather than spread out along the ground. After a moment she was gone all together, pulled into the crystal with only a very weak light deep in the center of it. Ranma sat back, very tiredly and tried again to calm his mind. That sort of spell was incredibly difficult for someone like him who had no talent in magic. The scouts who were awake looked at Ranma, and tried to sort out their feelings on this.

Ranma looked over to the fallen Mars, his face going cold and his eyes showing a deep rage. "She had better be glad she is already out. She almost killed…"

Moon just walked up and hugged Ranma from behind. "Is she going to be alright?"

"I don't know. In this form she may be able to heal, and feed off of me." He looked at Mars again, and stood up. He pulled his hands into fists and black flames danced up his arms. "But if my Daughter dies there will be another grave right next to hers."

Everyone just looked at the enraged Ranma, as after a moment the flames died down. Up on a roof top Setsuna's face drained of all color. This was NOT how this was supposed to happen. Usagi was supposed to save Cassy from Rei, taking the lash herself. Ranma was supposed to be grateful to Usagi, and easier to lead into their fold. There was NO good outcome here, only a further deepening of the split between the scouts. Setsuna needed to get back to the gates and see what the hell had just happened here.

The other scouts all moved back and forth in their feelings between anger at Ranma's "threat" and shame at how this had all turned out. The demon-girl HAD saved them. She cut them out of the webs. She had also given them some sort of healing, from whatever the effects of the webs had done to them.

They had also failed to make even a dent in this new monster, yet this boy literally tore it apart. Mercury scanned him during the fight and detected no strong magic's around him, though some odd energy readings. Venus and Jupiter were off in their own normal boy related fantasies until Ranma made his comment about killing Mars, if the other girl died. Jupiter was very protective of her friend even if she was the one at fault here. Jupiter was also was trying get the "my daughter" comment. She did however tense and got ready to defend her teammate if needed.

Venus didn't hear the comment at all; she was still being her normal hungry self. All she heard was Super Hunk in black saying "blah blah blah blah…" and Venus drooled.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Chibi-Usa looked up at Saturn. The guilt lay on both of their hearts like a coating of lead they both remember their conversation earlier.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

"Hotaru, I need to share a secret with you, and you can't tell ANYONE, especially the other outers. Can you do that?"

"Even Setsuna-momma?"

"Especially not her. Can you PROMISE me that you can keep this? It's REALLY important, and I have to have someone to talk to about this. With the other scouts acting like children or in some cases whores, I need someone right now."

Hotaru gave Chibi-usa a quick hug. "Ok, I promise, no matter what it is I will listen, and help if I can"

Chibi-usa sighed "Ok before you make this promise I need to tell you that Puu is a lot of the problem. Still willing?"

Hotaru after a second hugged her again and said "Yes, no matter what it is, I am there for you."

Chibi-usa hugged Hotaru hard. "Thank you thanks you. I don't like what I am going to tell you but if I don't tell you, really bad things are going to happen."

She dragged Hotaru to ice cream and started her story.

They sat in the ice cream shop, far from the front where the other customers were. This was a great date shop, hidden little nooks for dates and a nice bar type area to hang out. They even had something that no one else offered in the entire district, a special treat called a rocket shake (Try this is you want to. 3 shots espresso chilled : 3 scoops of chocolate ice cream and a banana. Wired chocolaty goodness). They did not notice however that Ami had snuck in and sit close enough to hear them.

Usa sat there and slowly stirred her shake. A very big sigh came from her.

"Taru, I am sorry. Really really sorry and I hope you will forgive me. Ever since I have been back I have lied to you and everyone else"

Hotaru looked at Usa concerned. She knew Usa. They were best friends. If something was going to make her lie to everyone it had to be something big.

"What's going on Usa-Chan". Taru tried to be light hearted about her reply but her concern was still in her voice. Usa took a big breath to calm a bit and took a drink.

"I am from a point in time farther along than the Usa you know. I am older than mom right now. I needed to hide, because something big is going to happen soon, and I have got to do something about it I just don't know what."

"What's going to happen?"

"We are going to meet apparently a wonderful guy, use him to fight a great evil that the Senshi can't deal with and then when he is no longer needed, we are going to betray him." Usa started tearing up "And Mom and Pluto are behind it. Something happens to Pluto in the future, same with mom and they are well Wrong somehow. I think Puu is completely insane to be honest."

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Ami was shocked to hear about this. This was not the Usagi she knew. It could be the Setsuna she knew though. The road to hell and all were paved with the best intensions. Usagi on the other hand. Betraying her own son-in-law?

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Hotaru could not believe what her friend was saying. She could see needing to come back from a different point in time. She could even see having to hide that from everyone else. But how could Setsuna-momma be insane. That couldn't be right. Sacrificing a good man once he was no longer useful didn't seem right either. It was against everything they stood for.

"Are you sure Usa? Is there some mistake in this? Maybe he turns evil or something"

"No, he doesn't turn evil. Hell, if I read the gate's right he is the greatest man we will ever meet. We both end up married to him"

Hotaru blinked. While she loved Usa, and was kind of open to the idea of a relationship with her, she had not thought they would be in a relationship with the same man. Though she really could not think of anyone she would rather share someone with.

**&^%$$#!#$%^&**

Ami's thoughts grew darker. What had Setsuna done? First betraying someone who helped, and getting Usagi to go along with harming an innocent, to hear that he, per Usa, was one of the best of men, and married to more then One Senshi? Who WAS this guy for one, but more importantly how could anyone convince Usagi, who preached Love and Justice to everyone to go along with this. Ami could see why Usa was so secretive and upset.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Usa looked at Hotaru musing "Taru, Don't go all inner on me ok? I am serious. Nice points aside my mother uses the worst punishment she can on him, for no more reason than that he objected to something she was planning to do. Something that would have made beryl envious in its evil. Mom's going to strip mankind of the ability to have evil in them"

Hotaru nodded. Setsuna had said that as well "If there is no evil, what is wrong with that?" Hotaru had not ever given it extensive thought; she just took that at face value.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

'There it is' Ami thought to herself. She had always had misgiving about this idea as it had been presented. It was mind control, pure and simple. Is this man challenged the idea of purging evil, then he would be a threat to how Setsuna presented Crystal Tokyo. If he got through to Usagi, he would be a major threat. Being married to Usa, and the Neo prince because of that, he would have influence over both of them.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

"Taru, how do you take away any chance at evil to exist in the minds of men? You take away anything you personally think is evil. With that you take away their ability to choose. "

Hotaru still didn't really understand this. She could tell that Usa had spent a lot longer thinking about this than she had though.

"But they can't choose evil, Usagi has a good idea of what is good or evil doesn't she?"

"Sure mom does. But what if one of the things that is considered "evil" is that men have equals rights to women. I mean the Queen rules, so why should the general populous be any different. If you force them all to think that way, how could the men even think to want equality? That is one of the rules in place. Men are considered inferior because of a unthought-of out bias mom has developed over the years."

This was starting to make some sense to Hotaru. It was a side of things that she had never seen presented before.

"So if someone thought that two women together was wrong"

"Yes, they would be made to not be together. They would not even consider it. No matter how long they had been together. They would just stop. In some cases it would kill them, but they would stop"

Hotaru didn't like how that thought went, nor how Usa said it. It was like she was thinking of something specific. "Is there something too that you're not telling me?"

Usa got a very pained look on her face.

"Taru, you remember when the inners went forward? The future I rebelled against mom?"

"Yes, you told me about that as well"

"It wasn't until much later that I realized something that had bugged me about that story. Other than Puu where are the rest of the Outers?"

Hotaru had never even thought about it, but some alarms started going off in her head.

In a very quiet voice she asked "Where are they"

"I don't know where you are in that time line but I can guess. I know what happens in the one I come from. What is the biggest thing we have lost after the great freeze?"

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Ami felt very ill inside. Population. The first order of business after the freeze and creation of crystal Tokyo would be to grow the race as a whole, to sustainable levels. Usagi would know that. Her using the crystal to change the hearts of men. Everything would be sacrificed to protect the race as a whole.

Half of the outers could not and would not follow that command. Guilt leading to insanity or death would be the only options.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Hotaru had a good idea at this point where this was going.

"People"

"And how do you get more people?"

"Having everyone have kids" Hotaru knew what had happened. For some reason the Usagi of that time had decided that to protect humanity everyone needed to have kids. There we so few left, that she could very easily have thought it on some level wrong to NOT have kids. It was the one thing Ruka and Chiru could not have on their own. If Usagi did make her personal biases evil, then she would have subconsciously opted for what she needed as queen and just not thought about it.

"Yeah she made them feel like they were evil for still loving each other. Mom didn't take the love away from them, just the idea it was ok. She didn't mean to but Haruka and Michiru were an unexpected side effect of my mother's rule. I don't think mom even realized what she had done. She just found out one day that they had taken a ship and left. I WATCHED them on the gate fly right into the sun. They could not handle Moms spell and their own love."

Hotaru was shocked by all of this.

"Can't we change this?"

"Yes, we can, I think. But I have to use Puu's gates to figure out how to fix it. And I have to do it when she is not at them herself."

"How are you going to use the gates? I mean that is just Setsuna-momma that can do that."

Usa grinned a little "There is more to being an Heir to the throne than useless posturing Taru. Mom never knew this but the rulers and the heirs had as much access to the gates as Pluto did. We were supposed to counterbalance each other. Otherwise Pluto would be the ruler and not an advisor, all by manipulating events until her outcome came to pass"

"You mean like the future you came from"

"Yes, and I am here to fix that" Usa grinned at Hotaru "I will not have my wife out wandering the universe looks for a cure for our husband because of some insanity my mom has. One way or another we have to change this."

They continued to eat their ice-cream until they were done. Ami left as quietly as she came in. When she got home, she was violently ill.

'I will NOT let Usagi do this. I cant. This cant happen' She thought to herself.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Now Usa was dying a little inside over those words. So was Hotaru. They had found their best chance to change this. But it meant hurting someone who will be or would have been very dear to them both. It may have even killed her. They didn't know yet if this would make an even bigger mess. Usa had told Hotaru about the monster that comes through after Pluto's death. The one that envelopes the earth in a few hours, and leaves the solar system a dried out husk. They did know what the stakes were. But it still made them ill thinking about what they had been forced to do.

They had stopped Usagi from saving Cassy by Usa starting an argument with Usagi Just at the moment that she needed to be watchful. Very soon they would have to account to Ranma, and they both prayed Cassy would survive. And that he would eventually forgive them.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Ranma was quick to understand forgiveness of others. He had practiced that all of his life. He forgave his pops, he forgave his mother. He even forgave the Tomboy. He hated to see something suffer. What Ranma did NOT get was if he showed someone compassion, instead of destroying them, he would be responsible for their actions.

How could he be at fault for something someone else did.

Val 'en just kept trying to train Ranma, just as Kosh commanded. Val 'en knew what Kosh had in mind, in part anyway.

Edited chapter


	8. Chapter 6 Codes of the hunter v2

_Updated chapter lots of new content_

**Hunters code.**

Ranma came back alone and sat out back on the grass, trying to calm himself. Cassy was, well not here. He had failed her. She was closer to him than anyone had ever been. That was the bonding, he would get revenge. He…

He sobbed quietly. He could see Val 'en standing over him.

""'Always offer forgiveness to any who ask. If they are true, then they are an ally against the darkness. War and purity are not the only paths on the hunt."

'Forgivness Val 'en?' he thought how can I forgive this.

A light grew out of the crystal. Beyond Cassy he felt another light within it.

***My Avatar. You forgive because I demand it. You Test for truth but you forgive because I will it.***

Ranma felt Kosh's presence descend on him calming him and opening the connection to Cassy's spirit a little more.

***My gift will serve you and me again. She will serve me, through her sacrifice. A change is coming, on that is important to me. Watch and wait, Avatar. Test for truth and forgive. Remember my code, and this will all pass***

Ranma sigh "yes my lord."

Then Cassy's voice was in his head _^Daddy, this is for the best. I can't tell you why, but when you are at the right point, make her become me, until I come back. That is my desire, treat her like you would me, and love her like you do me. Please? I will be ok right where I am. ^_

Ranma bow his head to the inevitable. He might even be able to argue with Kosh. He had been an avatar long enough to know that. But Cassy? He could never argue with her.

His thoughts still continued to be dark through the night as he meditated, and tried to find his center again.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Nodoka awoke in her bed. She can't remember how she got here; all she can remember was the dream about seeing her son again.

'I wonder how I got back here. I thought I was working at the shrine." She feels incredibly weak. Her dream usually makes her sleep poorly but this felt like she had been crying, and that something had been ripped from her in the night.

She sat up and realized she was still in her Working Kimono, not in a more traditional night time outfit. The room was neat and dust free. In fact the two broken vases were not there either, along with the tanto she was sure she had left on the dresser.

"Someone must have moved me here. Only Tofu has my keys. One of the kids perhaps?"

A very faint smell of coffee drifted through the room. Personally Nodoka disliked coffee, preferring tea herself. However she did know at least one coffee drinker who could have had keys. Nabiki. Nabiki must have pulled herself together enough to try and start moving on again.

'Well I should get up and go see who my new guest is'. It would be good to have someone the house again. Even if she still did not deserve to live in her own home yet.

Nodoka walked downstairs and saw without much surprise a very un-caffeinated Nabiki. Nabiki was too busy tapping on the coffee maker to notice her presence. Nodoka knew Nabiki well, before her "incident" and knew just how irritable Nabiki could be prior to coffee. Nodoka remained quiet and sitting at the table waited for Nabiki to finish pouring the cup.

Nabiki for her credit was not trying to be rude. She just really needed caffeine right now. Sleep had not been an option last night. She doubted that she was going to get any at any point in time today either. Cup in hand she turned to sit at the table in front of Nodoka. Before saying anything she chugged the scalding drink.

"So you saw the Baka eh? Don't really know to be happy for you, or just upset from this situation."

'You saw the..' Nodoka paused. "Nabiki, what are you saying? I saw who? And how did I get here last night." There was a mixture of dread and hope in her reply.

Behind her a familiar voice cut in.

"I guess she means me mom. I found you and brought you back here."

Nodoka turned slowly and saw like in her dream last night Ranma standing in front of her. And just like in her dream he looked the same as when he died. All except for his eyes. They were harder, and far more tired than she ever remembered them being. Instead of the swirling storm that encompassed you, his blue eyes were cold, and hard like an icy wind across the arctic.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Lady Saturn walked out of the throne room, glaive in hand. This was her yearly dressing down of the kingdom. Next for a much happier time for today. Spending the rest of the day with her Co-Wife Usa.

As she walked down the ivory clad hallway, she saw a little girl, no more than 6 or 7 playing with a ball.

Usa-ko knew she was not supposed to be here, and that Puu would scold her when she was found. But she wanted to play and this was the best place to. Since she could remember she was never let out of the inner cloister of the palace, not willingly anyway. She still escaped from time to time, to play outside. Just like she was doing now.

She bounced the ball off of the wall and when she went to catch it, missed. The ball rolled down the hallway, to land at the feet of a woman she had never seen before. She was beautiful long black hair like Lady mars had. She was carrying a tall stick like Puu did, her was longer and had some sort of knife on it. She also wore a metal dress, colored black. Very unlike the white everyone else she knew wore.

"Your very pretty lady" said Usa-ko

The lady knelt down and rolled the ball back to Usa-ko

"And you're a very nice girl. I am Saturn, what's your name" Saturn knew exactly who she was, but it was better to talk to the girl this way

"I am Usa-ko, and I am 6!" she stated with some authority.

Saturn just giggled about this. She could not wait and make fun of Usa with this conversation

"Well Usa-ko, I won't tell you MY age. A lady never does that" she smiles at the child.

"Mommy says the same thing" replied Usa-ko

A dark shadow flitted over her eyes a moment "yeah, I am sure she does" the pain at losing her friends was still hard to bear after all of this time. But the connection to her lord, her husband and her wife made it more bearable. Finding her Mother again, that helped too.

A _click click click_ was heard moving down the hallway. Usa-ko looked up and saw that Puu was not looking happy. She was going to get scolded again. Usa-ko looked down at the floor.

Lady Pluto just ignored the young girl. "I see your still around Saturn" Lady Saturn's eyes sharpened.

"Yes I am. I see your still here too. We are getting close to the end for you though, so it's not all bad." Replied Lady Saturn.

"I should have you detained as a threat to the kingdom." Pluto continued to glare at Saturn.

"Ohh come on now Pluto, you know that will not work. How many times have you tried that? You cant touch me anymore than I can repay you for what you did."

Pluto looked at Saturn with almost unbridled hate. She could not even remember that there was a time this woman lived with her, and grew up with her. All she could remember was this woman, who held more personal power than the queen did. Saturn was too powerful to control anymore. With her husband gone, and what happened to Uranus and Neptune, Saturn made it clear the first time anyone messed with either her or her wife, The Silence would come.

To Lady Pluto, Saturn was even more evil than Beryl.

"So you're going to spend the rest of the afternoon with the traitor?" drawled Pluto, trying to get under Saturn's skin.

"No, no of course not Puu-chan. Why would I want to hog you all to myself? I am sure there are other people in the court you can backstab like you did Serenity and I." came the response

Pluto just looked at her. "You should go do your business and get out of this system"

"I would love too, but now is not the time to choke the life from you Dearest Pluto. Instead I shall go see my husband awhile." Answered Saturn brightly. "But don't fret, the time for that happy thought is rapidly approaching"

She bent over and patted Usa-ko on the head. "You're going to grow up to be just a stunning woman Usa-ko. I am very glad I know you "Lady Saturn started humming to herself as she walked off. She knew she was for the moment untouchable.

Lady Pluto just ground her teeth in rage, completely ignoring little Usa-ko. Usa-ko for her part snuck away. Maybe she could get away from the scolding.

Nah she didn't think so either.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

"You're alive?" Nodoka was stunned. "You came back from the dead?"

Ranma waves his hands up in front of him " No no I wasn't dead, just well somewhere else. It just took me awhile to get back."

Nabiki pours a second cup for herself 'This may be a 2 pot morning' she grimaces as the first cup has appeared to do nothing for her.

"Yeah and you brought such a pretty girl back with you. By the way, I know we didn't get to talk last night, but where is she? I didn't have to run her out of the furo this morning, and I know she wasn't in your room. "

Ranma looked very pained by this. "Nabs, I don't want to talk about this right now."

Nabiki realized that there was something serious that had to have happened. She feared that it could have been one of THEM showing up.

Nodoka had gotten up and walked over to Ranma. She was feeling his arm, touching his face. She was trying to establish his "realness" that he was not some sort of Phantom.

"Ranma, How is this possible. Please tell me what this all means.

Frankly she was too afraid to hug him right now. Too afraid that if she hugged him, he would disappear and she would wake from another dream.

Ranma sighed. "I can't really describe some of this; it just does not translate well into anything you would understand. The world was 'Different' there. But here is what I can put into words." he told her more or less the same things he told Nabiki earlier. How he had gone to another place. Where he fought in an unending war against shadows. He talked about his mentor and friend Val 'en. How he was chosen to become the leader of the Hunters after Val 'En's passing on. How he was the chosen champion to an elder god of the light. The only thing he did not say a word of was Cassy. Nabiki noticed that all mention of her was missing.

"Ranma, We will need to talk later about this" Nabiki tells him with some finality. She does not like the math here. Cassy is missing. Ranma looks upset. He won't even mention his 'Daughter' to his mother. Something is wrong here. But then again, A LOT of things are wrong here.

As Ranma finishes his story, Nodoka does something she has wanted to do for 15 years. She falls to her knees and begs him for forgiveness. Ranma just picks her off of her knees, and simply forgives her.

Nabiki really wanted to let this play out but she had business of her own that needed to be talked about.

"Ranma, this is kind of important, last night I got a call from Kasumi. The Amazons are back, looking for you"

Ranma sighed. "Not this again"

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

It had been a year and Usa-ko was again outside of the cloister. She spent more time outside sneaking out because she wanted to see if she could find that lady again who called herself "Saturn". In Usa-ko's sterile world Saturn was a very marked change. She sat on a bench in the grand hallway, and was about to go back to her room to try and to play with her cat some when once again walking down the hallway was the black clad woman.

"Usa-ko!" Saturn smiled at her "you must be 7 this year right?"

Usa-ko jumped up and went and hugged the dark clad lady. Even around the armor she wore.

"Yeap! Puu scolded me a lot when I talked to you before. But I thought you were nice" Usa-ko smiled.

"To you? Usa-ko, I promise you, on my staff and my heart. You I will always be nice to" Saturn looked down and the young girl who would one day become her wife.

The two walked down the hallway, and Saturn stopped looking out the window. In the garden area, Usa-ko saw that one strange statue that she had always felt drawn too. A couple of seats were there, and a girl who also wore black, with deep red hair.

Usa-ko looked at Saturn "Sa-chan? Who is that lady? I have seen her before, but always from faraway"

Saturn just looks at Usa, knowning that Usa was waiting for her. "That is my wife Usa"

"Your wife has the same name as me?" Usa-ko asked. "She sure is pretty. I hope I can be pretty like her one day"

Saturn smiled at her softly. "You will Usa-ko, you will."

Saturn said goodbye to Usa-ko and went down to have her anniversary with HER Usa.

&^%$#!#$%^&

Looking out from the plane, Shampoo watched as they started their decent into Tokyo International Airport. Her children were with her. They were twins, a boy and girl. The boy was cocky, and strong. His name was Ranchek. He was already starting to be chased by the warriors of the tribe. Her daughter was much more like her mother both powerful and graceful. Her name was Ranbo. Grandmother had felt Ranma's return. He had left the world, and after 15 years of living Shampoo had acquired a little more wisdom than she had when he was pulled away. Only the Amazons knew that he had not died, only been forced out of this dimension. That knowledge they kept to themselves. After all of this time Shampoo understood that unless Ranma wanted it, no one would ever be able to keep the God slayer. He was too strong for that. However that didn't mean that she would not at least give it a try to get him again. 'after all' she thought to herself '15 years is long enough for even him to start to notice Women.' She knew Ranma would have questions about her kids. They both looked like almost dead ringers for him at mid-teen's except they both had deep dark auburn hair with purple highlights. Of course Ranma and Shampoo had never "Been" together or anything like that. 'I wonder how Ranma will handle this. He gets kind of twitchy when surprised.'

She looked over at her kids next to her. 'I must be only virgin ever to give birth to twins'

Ranbo looked up at her mother and noticed her smiling softly.

"Are we going to find the God slayer?" she asked.

"I really don't know Ranbo. But we will try."

Over the intercom the landing warning blared. Shampoo and her kids put their tray into the upright position and prepared for arrival.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Every year, Usa met the dark haired woman. While she had gotten everyone else to not call her Usa-ko anymore, this woman still did, and Chibi-Usa had never minded for some reason. BUT… she had just gotten back from the past, and she now KNEW who this woman was. It was her Taru-chan. So she waited in her usual spot, the day that she KNEW Taru would show up.

Right on cue, down the hallway walked Hotaru. Chibi-Usa could see the face of her friend, just older in the woman she had seen once a year for years now.

"You could have told me you know" Chibi-Usa was trying to look annoyed.

"What? and Ruin the surprise.? What kind of friend would I be if I did that?" Playfully replied Hotaru.

"You would be MY kind of friend. That's who." Chibi-Usa run up and hugged her. "Wow you have grown up well."

"I have a little help from some pink hair little spore I knew" smirked Hotaru.

"No… not you to Taru."

Hotaru tweezed Chibi-Usa's nose.

"So when am I going to get to meet your wife? I know I have seen her around here from time to time. And WHY are you only here one day a year. And what is up between you and Puu?"

"Well.. Would you believe that all three answers are the same? And I can't tell you about it? It's those silly time mechanics." Answered Hotaru.

Chibi-Usa sighed. "Ok can I at least to say hi to my best friend's wife?"

Saturn looked a bit sad. "Not today dear. But you will soon, I promise"

Hotaru made an exception to her normal time and spent awhile talking to Chibi-Usa. Chibi-Usa was just glad that Taru-chan still treated her like she was her friend, not some distant adult. Hotaru hugged her "I have got to get dear. I only get a short time to talk to my wife, and now is that time." They said their goodbyes and Chibi-Usa turned around to see Puu looking at her.

"Be Careful Usa. She will cause you pain one day. Just like she does me."

Chibi-Usa was not sure what to make of this, but she did know that Puu was certainly different now, than back in the past.

It made her want to learn more about the time mechanics both Puu and Taru talked about.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

The meeting this time was not at the shrine. Today it was called by Usagi to be on what she felt was an appropriate location. It was called to take place at the top of Tokyo tower to remind some of her 'Friends' what they were supposed to be doing. To say Usagi was angry was a vast understatement. Furious and approaching murderous was a better description. Usagi was going to hold Court, and her advisors knew it. Usagi even arrived long before the other Inners were told to show up. She sat at one of the benches, and thought about what she was going to say. The people who were up at the top of the tower did not know why, but started to feel they should go to other places. Home, shopping anywhere but here. No fear or anything like that, just a subtle field of avoidance so they could have a private meeting.

The moon cats looked up at her feeling very apprehensive. Usagi looked JUST like her mother when she was good and truly pissed. They knew from experience the best solution for them would be to stand by her and not draw her attention. It's not like they thought Usagi would hold innocents accountable for the actions of one person but as one of them said to the other that morning "I only have 3 lives left, I don't want to chance them."

In front rather than behind Usagi a Senshi who was not invited teleported in. Setsuna appeared in front of Usagi, and looked down at her sitting on her bench.

"Are you trying to make that bench into a throne Usagi?" Setsuna was testing the waters a bit. From her researching last night she had discovered who had gotten to the gates and wondered just how much of this mess was from her interference. No matter how she looked at the threads the only outcome of this set of events was a confrontation between Ranma and the scouts, at a much earlier time than in the one she had been working towards. Nearly ALL of those confrontations ended badly, with fairly even odds that Ranma and his cohorts won over the scouts or were defeated by them. Either outcome would give the spider things control of the earth though. No one would win here.

"Princess of Pluto" Usagi took a very formal tone with her. "With all that happened last night why did you not show up and warn us? Why didn't you warn me that my potential ally would be harmed by one of ours? I find this lack of information disturbing for someone who is supposed to be my advisor."

Setsuna was shocked to see parts of Usagi's mother coming out in anger. She also felt very uncomfortable having that directed at her again. Serenity the fourth had directed that at her more than once, finally resulting in her mental binding that only within the last couple of centuries been broken. If it had not been broken Setsuna would still have to accept any order Serenity the fifth gave her.

"I apologize my Queen." Setsuna tried to sort of be honest. "For all I do see in the gates, what happened last night I did not see. Something or someone deliberately changed the flow of events. The girl was supposed to have been saved from Mars. The boy was supposed be grateful to you for that."

"Odd how you selectively did not see THIS particular event, when you knew of other events that were supposed to happen. Why did you withhold the information about the pair?"

Setsuna noticed that while Usagi had not transformed, Usagi did have the crystal out and was holding it in her hand. 'If she has learned how her mother could strip Senshi of their powers.. Then maybe I understand why Pluto said we changed her personality.

"There was in my readings zero chance of this event going wrong. In every future I could see you would jump to save the girl. Every time, you always saved her. The only thing I have come up with is that someone else could read the gates, and manipulated the events"

Usagi started to look REALLY angry at this.

"Pluto-San watching the gates is your job and only you have the ability to do this. Are you seriously expecting me to think that someone else could get past you, and use your private tool to change events in a way you could not notice! I think perhaps you may want to try a different lie when you are trying to cover your own failures."

Setsuna winced. Those exact words "you should try a different lie when you are trying to cover your own failures" had been said to her before. By the previous Queen Serenity. The problem was she was telling the truth more or less. And she was loath to tell Usagi the rest of this. Giving Usagi the power to oversee her for real could mean foolish mistakes.

The light from the crystal began to glow slightly more and Usagi's eyes started to match them.

"Setsuna, I care for you very much, however you need to make me understand why I do not need to strip you of your station, as my mother would have done when you failed in the first place"

"I shall do my best to find proof of the interference you majesty." Setsuna turned to leave

"Pluto-san wait a moment." Setsuna stopped. She saw Luna jump up on Usagi's lap and speak in low tones to her. Usagi nodded at Luna in agreement.

"Pluto-san, it has been pointed out to me that a less scrupulous time guardian would leave just to change me into something more pliable. I do not have all of my mother's knowledge, but my adviser has informed me how to ensure you do not do this. Just in case of course. If this is not something you would do, you will have no objections to it."

The light of the crystal grew blinding.

"You may go back to your gates guardian. But you may not through action or inaction change or alter my family or me for as long as the gates exist or until the I or my heirs rescind this command"

Setsuna felt more than heard the scream of her future self, being ripped from the timeline.

"Yes my queen" Setsuna meekly bowed and teleported back to the gates. If she had not been given permission, she would have had no choice to but tell Usagi the rest then. Her first command though was to return to the gates. She would most likely be at those gates for a long time.

'Well so much for the easy part.' Usagi thought to herself. Setsuna was always so controlled that it was easier for Usagi to be controlled with her. Her fellow scouts that was going to be a difficult conversation.

**&^%$#!#$%^&.**

"Bingo"

Usa had finally cracked it.

The Mercury computer was tied to the central mainframe still operational on the moon. Usa had now spent 4 years trying to get past a security system, only to find that all she needed to get past it was to ID herself, and log herself as Heir to the throne. This gave her access to a vast amount of records that were not available prior to this.

She spent a long time reading.

Days later, Usa was pacing in her room. She was Fuming about what she had learned. Thousands of years of deception

"I cannot believe how screwed up this is."

Usa had found early on in this researching this that she could use her interface to watch the time gates remotely. A lot of what she was seeing was gibberish, since she did not know how to filter results yet. But she saw some consistent threads. She would need to go back in time to try and salvage some of this. Maybe something good could come from it.

A Great old one was coming, one worse than Chaos itself. And he would consume the universe if not stopped. She was going to marry Taru, and some guy, who would know more about fighting that old one than anyone else in the universe. 'Something' would then happen to him, something to do with her mother, and Pluto. Much after that was pure gibberish. Most of what was before that was too. Usa suspected that it would remain so until she got more adept at reading the gates.

"Pluto deliberately hid that Mom or I could read the gates. She even got mom to rescind all controls placed on her This is one seriously fucked up situation."

Usa kept pacing back and forth. She also knew that Pluto would kill to keep these things quiet; She knew now why the moon cats died. That part she could see plainly. "Accidental death my ass"

She could see what happened to Uranus and Neptune as well. Nothing more tragic than that loss. All because of her mother, and by extension Puu, since mom never would have done that dumb thing otherwise.

"When Mom screws up, she doesn't do it half way' Usa thought to herself. "So how can I fix this?"

She researched the events around that time, trying to pinpoint what was going on. Weeks more she looked for the course, then she found it. In the gates, almost hidden under every other possibility, she saw a boy and girl appear out of nowhere, in a great light in Tokyo one day. She saw them meet her mother; she even heard his name "Ranma". She saw him start to fight the spiders. She never saw much of the girl though, until much later.

She moved things forward, she saw Ranma teaching her how to fight. How to dance in the winds. Ranma taught Taru how to fight as well. She blushed as she watched herself and Taru plan on seducing Ranma together. She even saw one very naughty image of her, Hotaru and him waking up in bed together. That made her as bright as a lamp.

She saw the great freeze occur and that it was not some natural disaster like Puu had told them but a deliberate attack. That attack may have been directed at the earth, or at the spiders she didn't know. But it came from intelligence.

And a marriage, thought that one was fuzzy, there must have been a dozen possible ways that marriage could have taken to go. The clearest one was the three of them married by a being of light. The next clearest was that he only married Taru-chan

She saw one great fight after the marriage, then nothing. The man was gone, and for the life of her she could not tell where. She did see for centuries that her and Taru met once a year, until something happened to the gates. Something that more or less ended her ability to see anything. It may have been her death but that was not the feeling she got. She felt the gates were destroyed by 'Something' Something powerful enough to breach the seal to where the gates were, and shatter them.

She saw more fighting with these huge spider things, then.

She also saw the detrition of her guardians mind as Pluto's slipped into insanity.

She examined everything she could, and committed it all to memory. First things first, she needed to find Ranma, and get on his good side. While she started examining the time line to see where it needed to be. That meant using the gates to send her back again.

Soon she found that she could use the gates through her communicator. She never realized that without Pluto's help it would be a one way trip. Or that after this started there would be Zero chance of Pluto letting her come back. To be honest thought she would not have cared. She had grown up watching Taru, meet with her wife. And she bet that was meeting with her future self.

Now just to figure out how to move back through the gates. It was a happy happenstance for her that her Aunt Mercury had noticed some of the network traffic, and perhaps, hypothetically, had some ideas on how to do that. It was odd that she happen to write all of that down and drop it in Usa's room.

Yeap Odd that.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

It had been a long morning. Nodoka had gone to lay down and Ranma told Nabiki while they were going to have that talk, he was currently taking a Ranchek on it. He sat outside, in the breeze, sitting and holding the crystal in his hands. Faintly in the stone a light was flickering, steadily, in time with his own heart.

Focusing his Chi, he kept trying to feed it into the crystal, but it seemed like either the crystal was blocking it, or there was too much distraction in him. Taking more deep breaths he thought back, trying to remember the light that Kosh shown when he appeared before Ranma. What his mind kept going back to however was Val'en.

"Ranma remember the code. We hunt the shadows, to save the light. But neither can exist without the other. If we won in total, a new shadow would form. If they won, a new light would emerge. This is the law of our hunt. The first law is 'The hunt is the action itself. There can be no winner'"

Ranma remember many happy times, learning to fight with the hunters. And gaining power from Kosh as he touched each of his followers. He thought about Urak. Urak had come to them from the realm of the Corrupted. He had been of Seails lands, and gave himself to the pleasures of evil, then fought back his way to the light. Val 'en used Urak as an example for the 5th law of the hunters.

"Remember every hunter falls. No matter whom they are. The brightest light of the universe can fall to its own power. Urak fell, and then he came back. Now he is the Hunter who keeps the Past. Our record keeper. On his return peace was his hunt, and it was his reward. His redemption came from his own fight against evil and our forgiveness of his crimes. This is the Fifth rule of the Hunt. 'Always offer forgiveness to those who ask. If they are true, then they are an ally against the darkness. War and purity is not the only path of the hunt.'"

The light on the crystal seem to grow slightly at this, as Ranma could feel it feeding on him slightly.

"My anger blinded me, made her unable to feed from me. IF she fed from me now, she would take some of those evils in her. She is resisting me, not the other way around."

Ranma lost himself in memories of his hunts, and training. Trying to resolve the anger in him with the Code of the Hunt. He knew what he was commanded to do, but he still chose his own path. Could he do as they asked?

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Usa waited at home for Usagi to return from her 'Meeting' with the scouts. Saturn and her had decided to accept the consequences of their actions, and Usa had a plan on how to reconcile this. One of the many parts of this however is that her mother was going to be told the truth. At least about Usa and her age. Usa still didn't trust her mother. She knew what she became. But she loved her regardless, and what she was going to put on the line for that her mother deserved to know, and be present for. An eternity of servitude or giving up her life was what she had to look forward too. Deep inside, she knew there was no chance for her for anything more than that. She also knew this was what she deserved. So she waited, with Saturn there for support, and to be present. Saturn wanted to join her, but Usa insisted. She was at fault. She would humble herself and pay the price as Ranma saw fit. All of this just to make sure the fight occurred now rather than in a few hundred years, to hope that Pluto would be sane enough to give the fight up. Even if he hated her, and killed her, if she could stay him from the statue, any personal discomfort would be worth it.

Usagi came back exhausted. She had stood Pluto down, and beaten some sense into the other inners. Rei was still being difficult, but Rei would not be able to exist alone. Now she just needed to make sure nothing strange happened to Chibi-Usa, and she could rest. 'Maybe I find someone better than Mammaru and he isn't really the father. That might be nice' she thought to herself. For some reason however Ranma didn't even enter into her thoughts about that. If he were younger she may have even wanted him to be like another child too her. He evoked those kinds of feelings in her, very similar to how she felt about Chibi-Usa. She walked into her room, expecting to find an empty bed, to rest a moment, before looking for her daughter. Instead her Daughter and Hotaru sat waiting patiently on the bed, looking like they were busted for doing something wrong.

Usagi closed the door behind here.

"Usa" Usagi started to say until she was interrupted by Chibi-Usa.

"Mom, we need to go see that boy, Ranma from last night."

Usagi blinked "Usa-dear I hope this isn't just some inner 'Must have the boy moment you are having'

Usa just looked at Usagi with a pained look on her face. "No mom. We need to talk to him. It's really important. And I need you with me. It may end up being the last.." Usa just could not hold it anymore. The weight of everything bore down on her, knowing what she did to someone else. Know what she had lost, and how she had cost Hotaru as well. Knowing what she had found in the gates, as the only solution. She had wanted more than this, but it was what she had earned. A life for a life.

Even though her aspect was draining from her and she was becoming more like her normal self, she could tell this was not a normal 'inner' reaction to Ranma. Usa looked like she had killed someone. 'Wait killed someone'

"Chibi-Usa did you have anything to do with the gates recently?"

"Look, I will tell you about it, but I need to talk to Ranma first. Please where does he live and will you please accompany me as my mother?."

Usagi looked at her and said "Of course dear. Let's go"

A Very tired Usagi lead the other two girls across the district to Ranma's home. Usa took one last look at her home with her mother. Hotaru was steeled to do what must be done, but she was having to seriously draw on her Senshi form, to keep from breaking down herself.

'I will miss you Usa.'


	9. Chapter 7 Death is as light as a feather

**Chapter 8 Death is as light as a feather.**

"Damm fuzzy gates!" Usa almost screamed to herself. She was examining the gates, trying hard to find a solution for her mistakes. Could see all of the times lines universally leading to certain key events. One Her mother would take a flame lash from Mars to protect Cassy. That would forever diminish mars in the eyes of everyone that she would never be able to collect a following among the Senshi again. It also would make Ranma and Cassy so grateful to Usagi, that he would willingly not act when she ends his existence out of a sense of honor. The next SURE event was when the earth needs him most, he repulses that attack, and dies at the end from betrayal. Then the great one appears, and the universe is for lack of a better term. Eaten.

Pluto would not be able to see this, she dies before that last event. But there is no change she can see that makes any difference if Usagi saves Cassy. Every time, she does and every time the universe ends.

"I can see why Pluto had constant migraines, stupid gates. Ok let's break this down." Usa thought about possible changes, then looked for one that Usagi did not save Cassy. Most of those ended as bad as the first, just sooner. Ranma and the scouts fighting. Ranma losing, and every weirdo from his past coming up to avenge him. Too late finding that none of them can fight the spiders and the first scout overtakes the world. That idea was no good.

Back and forth she went, trying different options, until she slumped to the floor. Hotaru was sitting behind her and heard Usa start to cry. She put her arms around Usa.

"Taru, I know what we have to do. Please forgive me, I am going to have to break a lot of my promises to you" Usa was still crying.

Hotaru hugged her tighter. "what do we have to do?"

"We have to let someone innocent be hurt, so Ranma does not fall under Pluto's power."

This saddened Hotaru. Letting an innocent be hurt was really bad.

"Are you sure this is the only way?"

"Yes," Usa cried some more "But at least I pay the price for that."

"what do you mean?"

"Taru, to balance the scales between Ranma and us…. I have to die… a life for a life. There IS no other way."

Usa just cried into her friends shoulder, knowing soon she would be gone, and she would deserve it.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

At the Saotome residence.

Usa turned before they approached the gate and looked at her mother.

"Mom, before we do this, I need you to SWEAR to me that no matter what happens you will not get involved. "

Usagi could feel the gravity of the situation, some really was bothering Chibi-Usa.

"Look, I am your mother I cannot promise you that.

Mom, I need you too. If you try and interfere, I am going to make sure I castrate Daddy now, just to be sure I NEVER get born. This is that important. If this goes south not only will crystal Tokyo not come to pass, but I THINK the entire universe may die"

Usagi felt sure she was exaggerating.

"Taru, Please make SURE she does not interfere. No matter what."

Hotaru nodded at this

"I will, even if I have to tie her to my glaive"

Usagi had a really bad feeling about all of this.

Usa reviewed in her mind what needed to happen. If she made a single mistake this would all be for nothing. Any sign of regret about offering her life, and Ranma would not take it. He would instead go after Rei who would NEVER apologize for her actions. That leads to the fight between the scouts. Same with Fear. She shows any and this ends the same way. If Hotaru can't stop Usagi, he still won't do it.

It could still go south, but at least this way there was a chance that Ranma would still fight to save everyone. She gives up her own chance at happiness but Taru still has hers, and life may continue. Without Ranma though. Then it's all over anyway.

Usa Steeled herself. 'This is what the old Samurai left. The death itself is not the hard part, it's the making it there, that is tough'

Usa took a very deep breath and composed herself again. Hotaru knew what was going on in her friends mind, and made herself ready to follow Usa's path as well.

Usagi looked up at the door. This was the same place that she got to know some wonderful friends but it seems right now that she was going to an execution. Hers or.. No Usa could not have done anything to Ranma. As far as she could tell they had not even met, other than a moment being in the same place. For some reason though knocking on this door that stood before her filled her with this terrible sense of dread.

Usa knows that this is her time to face the music as it were. She walks past Usagi and reaches up to knock on the door. She took a deep breath, steadying herself for what she was sure to soon be her own death.

*knock-Knock*

Beyond the door she hears someone come and open the door. An older woman with greying red hair opens it and smiles at the three girls.

"May I help you?"

Usagi looked real quick, she was suddenly not quite sure she was at the correct place. Usa however knew this was it.

"Yes Ma'am, I am here to speak with Saotome-san about a serious matter"

Nodoka looked at the small child 'there is no way this little girl could be a fiancée. She was far too young. Ranma was dead.. No he was gone before she was born'

"You may call me Aunty Nodoka, Who may I tell my son is calling for him?"

"Nodoka-san" Usa bowed before her "please inform Ranma I come to make amends for his daughter."

Nodoka blinked again. "Daughter? He didn't tell me he had a daughter."

Usa nodded "Something terrible happened last night, and my family has to come and make amends."

Usagi was lost. She knew her daughter was determined but she was basically admitting to be the cause of last night's fiasco. Add to that she was going to tell Ranma that she was at fault. Maybe this was a misguided sense of honor since she was the princess. However if that were the case she as queen needed to do this not her.

Nodoka thought a moment. "Please come in, and take a seat I shall get my son."

The three girls walked in and sat down. Both Usa and Hotaru looked very sad and tired. Usagi leaned over to Usa "We WILL talk about this young lady"

"Yes momma, we will, if I am alive after this we can talk."

Usagi went white at that. Ranma would not kill someone over this would he? He was a nice guy… And Usagi put the 'Avenge his daughter' into that thought. She started shaking. If someone had killed Usa, even though she WAS the spore… Usagi would respond with a mothers wrath. How could Ranma act any different than she would?

Ranma walked into the room with a scowl on his face. His mother said someone had come to take responsibility for his 'daughters tragedy last night" and he was expecting to see that black haired bitch. Instead he saw Usagi, and two of the cheerleaders that he never got a chance to talk to last night. Both were easily younger than any of the rest of them. One hardly seemed that she was out of middle school yet.

"Usagi." He started coldly "did that bitch run off?" All of the scouts knew he was referring to Rei.

Usagi looked at him. "No, Rei did not come with us. She is… She is hiding at the shrine I would guess."

Nodoka placed the two pieces together Rei Hino is who they must be talking about. She knew Rei, and had worked at the Hino shine quite a lot. That meant the monk had been correct, Ranma had been there.

"Then why are you all here to claim you did this. Please tell me that you're not going to try to say YOU are at fault for her are you?"

"No Saotome-san. I am" said the very young girl.

Ranma looked at the little girl with the same weird hairstyle as Usagi. The main difference was that this girl had pink hair rather than Usagi's blond hair. Ranma also felt some sort of spell wrapping itself around her.

"Yah right you could not.."

"If I may interrupt Saotome-san. I am afraid I must insist. I AM at fault for this." With that she stood up and turned to Usagi "Sorry mom". Usa then dispelled her glamour.

In front of the group stood a very pretty girl, late teens, with deep auburn hair. She wore a silver dress and a silver tiara on her brow. She dropped to her knees in front of Ranma.

Around this point Nabiki has walked in from upstairs. She saw this highly attractive young girl almost prostrating herself before Ranma and sighed. 'He is at it again. Go figure' she thought to herself.

Usagi was very confused. Here was her daughter, but now her daughter was older than she was. And prettier. And dressed as the Neo-princess. And.. and.. and About to give up every secret they had to someone who may or may not have reason to kill her. It was at this point Hotaru changed into the black armored version of Saturn, and holding her glaive making more or less sure that Usagi would not get involved.

Nodoka and Nabiki were both surprised by this turn of events, but this WAS Ranma. Something like this was bound to happen. Nabiki did not know however that she was claiming to have killed Cassy. If she had she would have been trying to get in Ranma's way already.

"Saotome-san. I am princess Serenity the sixth. It was not only one of my guards that attacked Cassy, but" she bowed with her face to the floor. Everyone could tell she was close to crying "but I knowingly distracted my mother from saving her with my argument I picked with her. I have no excuse for my behavior. I know my reasons for doing this but they are not worth what I did. As princess and more as on my honor I offer my life in exchange for hers. I offer my death as well. Nothing could balance the scales on this, but this is all I can offer."

Ranma looked down at the girl with a very cold anger. His problem was deep down inside he could tell she was telling the absolute truth, at least as she saw it anyway. She stopped Usagi from saving his daughter. He also now could see why he had visitations last night. A warm pulse in the crystal reminded him of Cassy's request. 'Test her first'

Black flames built around his arms, and he appeared to be seriously considering killing her on the spot.

"You offer your death is that correct"

Usagi at this jumped up but Saturn blocked her. Ranma noted inside without looking at them that the Usagi was being stopped from interfering in this.

"Yes. I offer it freely. It would be a kindness to me if Cassy died from my meddling"

Ranma looked over at Saturn "And you why are you stopping Usagi-chan from interfering?"

Saturn looked at him with a very sad expression. "Because the princess is my best friend. This was her request."

That line of thought made no sense to Nabiki or Usagi, but made perfect sense to the two Saotome' s. Honor.

Ranma looked down on Usa and then looked up at is mother. "Mother please dress her correctly for one who is going to an honorable death. If she does not have a blade please allow her use of the Saotome Tanto."

Nodoka was a little concerned but it was his right. His family had been harmed and a girl who held honor important had come to redeem that. She hoped that her son would show mercy. Deep down she could not see him telling her to commit to this action.

Ranma looked at the rest in the room. "I am going outside to prepare myself. You ALL will stay here. Do not interfere. And Usagi, I apologize but if she is your daughter, then I must insist that you stay. If you disown her of course, then you may go." He looked at Saturn who stood her ground stopping Usagi. "I trust you will ensure this, as a woman of honor yourself?"

"Yes, Saotome-san. Usa was very specific in her desires, and I promised to uphold them."

Nabiki started to come at him to make him stop.

"Nabiki! Stay out of this. I am not the same person you knew. I KNOW what honor means now. I love you as family but do not interfere with my right as father to grant absolution to my daughter's killer."

With that Ranma turned and walked outside, shutting the screen door behind him.

**&%$#!#$%^&**

Mamoru was avoiding everyone today, still lost in thought. Rei had called him several times a day since the incident but he had never picked up. He had even gone to see Mokoti his best friend. They went to a coffee shop and sat and listened to a sanitized version of Mamoru problems. Motoki of course first has his own smart assed comment to throw in

"You should be glad you're in japan. In a lot of other places folks with your problems would be called Pedophiles."

Mamoru just looked at him. Yes they were younger than him, but to call him that. HE could not tell him that they would all live for thousands of years, so age meant nothing to them.

"Here is my take Mam-ko. If you are in love with one, pick them. If this is just lust or the like find someone else, hopefully closer to your own age." Motoki looked at him harshly. "And be honest about this. They ARE of age, I understand that but you are a lot older, and supposedly wiser. If you act like this leading them all on, you ARE scum. Don't make me reconsider my view of you"

Mamoru knew he was right. He knew that deep down he loved Usagi, for her silliness and everything that he had been saying was a fault for her. He had taken her for granted thanks to knowing that his daughter was with her and alive. Rei was fun, but she was just that, Fun. Usagi would mature into this wonderful woman and she had offered to let him be a part of that. Just like before, he had spurned her. Once with Beryl and now with Rei.

Mamoru nodded to Mokoti "you are right, I need to stop being an asshole."

"Ok then, so you will understand when I deck you when we leave this shop."

Mamoru sighed. Motoki was his friend and he knew that Motoki would do just that.

Which he did. If the tooth had not given way to the punch, the jaw would have. It was a good hit.

**&^%%$$#!#$%^&**

Nodoka took Usa upstairs who held her compositor just as a princess of Samurai should. She held herself up and poured the water over herself as she should have. While she did that Nodoka laid out the white kimono for her to dress in. Nodoka showed her no emotion, and just prepared her for the task. Usa's hair was bound back, to ensure that it did not interfere with the strike to her throught, and Nodoka picked up the Honor blade of the clan, pulled it out and showed it to her, as was her right. Usa ran her finger along the back of the blade and noticed the tip had broken off.

"His father broke our honor, and Ranma regained it. To honor what I thought was his death, the tip was broken, but the blade was still whole."

Usa nodded understanding the older woman.

Silently Nodoka was amazed that a girl her age in this time would follow such a path. She certainly acted like the Princess she claimed to be.

**&%^%$#!#$%^&**

The Future Dark Pluto could feel the time winds coming, a massive change to the current was happening, and from frantic communications from her past selves, she knew what the change was. She needed to act now, to at least have a chance at tis world coming to pass. She took the best course offered to her, Travel to the past to make others fix the curse that Serenity had placed on them.

She danced backwards always searching for a place that she could possibly change the events. She was without the knowledge of the gates, if she returned to them the winds would consume her and wipe her away. Eventually she would not be able to run enough and the winds would catch her anyway. She finally found the proper place to make her stand and hope that her allies' could make a difference. She went back to the same time as the curse being laid on them and teleported herself to the cabin of the other two outers who were of course playing around.

"I only have a limited time but I MUST give you information before I am wiped away" was the first thing they heard as she literally teleported over them on the bed. Haruka and Michiru both turned bright read and tried to bury themselves under blankets, but Dark Pluto stood on the sheets. "I don't care about what you're doing. I am about to be wiped from the time stream, so start listening quickly" the future Pluto intoned. "There is a man, Ranma Saotome who has taken the wills of both Serenity's to the point that they have destroyed both me, and the hope of the future. You MUST get Serenity to remove her curse from me, or everything we have worked for is lost" All of this Dark Pluto believed with all of her heart, after all it was the time SHE came from after all. She knew it to be true. "Almost all of the scouts are under his thrall at this point. Find a way to make Serenity remove the curse, or everything is… " with this the time winds caught up with the errant Dark Pluto, and she was ripped apart in front of the two Outers eyes.

Haruka looked at Michiru. There was much work to be done and Ranma Saotome needed to be dealt with.

**&%^$#!~#$#%&**

Ranma knows in his heart that he will not kill the girl. Not yet anyway. But her measure needed to be tested. The last rule of the hunters was specific in these cases, and he would follow it. So he resolved to test her. He tried to commune with the crystal that held Cassy, and to his surprise felt the correct response.

He stood and walked back into the house.

Nodoka had brought Usa down wearing all white, and holding on to the family sword. Usa had been given the tanto, and she held it in her lap. Usagi had tried to transform twice, but Saturn had punched her in the gut both times so that she could not focus enough to transform. Oddly the instant transformation was not working. Her future self knew this was not something that needed to be stopped. In fact it was the only way to ensure everyone's happiness, including Usa's.

Ranma walked in.

"Everyone act as witnesses, as is her right. We shall do this outside in front of the koi pond."

Nabiki thought she was going to be sick. She knew about honor but didn't think RANMA of all folks would kill another over it. He must be Very different than what she remembered.

They all walked outside. The sun shone brightly, with no clouds in the sky. There is the gentle flip of the fish in the pond and a gentle sound of the tapping of a Bamboo water trap built into a decoration in the yard. Near the pond was a white pillow designed to be knelt on.

Usa clutched the tanto. She hoped in her heart that at least Hotaru would not fall into the blame for this. It was 500 years until the they could have been close. Maybe Hotaru could still find happiness, with this debt paid.

"Is there anything you would like to say before your judgment?"

"Saotome-san. I deserve no mercy and I ask for none for myself. Please hold my mother and Hotaru here blameless in this and please continue to protect the earth from the darkness that is coming. From my heart I wish that I could have realized the better way of handling this, but I do this to do my best to balance the scales between us. And mother?"

Usagi choked "yes?"

"Please as my dying wish do not hold this against him. I deserve what he is about to do. It is my wish that after this you treat him as your own son, in my place."

Usagi could not believe that Usa would ask this of her. Usa was insane.

"I don't know that I can do that Usa."

"Please! This is what I ask of you. Please mother. Please.."

Usagi was silent for the moment. It was her baby asking her to forgive the person who would take her life.

"Hotaru, Please protect him as you would me. I release you from my service, and give you to him."

Hotaru nodded. She knew that this was going to happen from the discussion with Usa before.

Usa drew forth the Tanto, and pulled it from the sheath. She looked up at Ranma "Will you please be my second?"

Ranma looked down at her with a carefully maintained disgust. He was careful to maintain his act by using the soul of ice to make himself totally unreadable

"No, I have decided that you cannot sully our family blade even for this act. I shall deal with you personally."

White flames formed around his arms, and Usa looked down. At this moment she doubted her actions would make any difference in his mind, and she had lost all hope for fixing the mess with the future. She was truthful however, still accepting her fate. While looking down she put the tanto back in its sheath and said "As you wish Saotome-san." She knelt her head forward.

Ranma pulled out the crystal necklace that Saturn and Usagi remembered. "Look up at me." Usa obeyed.

"This is the crystal I tried to save my daughter's life-force in. This is what your judgment shall come from. "

Usa nodded still kneeling on the ground. Everyone saw the flames building around his arms, white and pure those fames started dancing across his back.

"I shall now pass judgment on you. You have forfeited your life to my daughters will. Will you accept all of my judgment?"

Yes"

"Without any reservation?"

"Yes"

"Then look down at the ground as you think on your death". Usa looked down. At least the guilt would stop.

"Now look at the crystal which contains the result of your actions"

Usa looked up at the crystal. A faint light pulsed within it.

"As my right, I claim your life in exchange for Cassy's" He pulled back his fist still holding on to the crystal.

Everyone there thought he was going to kill Usa at that point. Nodoka held on to Nabiki's shoulder as she tried to interfere, and Saturn had to physically restrain Usagi, as his fist moved forward. Usa just looked into the crystal unblinking knowing this was the payment for her own crime. Even if it failed she had done what she could. Usa felt the crystal lightly touch her brow however, and there was a blinding light from Cassy's crystal.

Ranma pulled his hand back. "She has accepted your apology. Now stand up and hear HER judgment."

Usa was stunned, just as everyone else there was. She was still alive. Her limbs lacked the strength to rise on her own. The adrenaline that had been pushing through her left this massive void and took all of her ability to move away. 'Alive, I am still..' And darkness overtook her.

Edited chapter


	10. Chapter8 Judgment of princesses v2

Edited chapter, and compressed

**The Judgment of the princess.**

Far away time has no meaning in the Realm. For sake of those bound by time, all shall proceed in one direction here, thought really it never did. The Realm is a place of total Fugue, all and everything at once.

Val 'en looks at his newest charge. Here is a boy that even the oneness that exists cannot fully read. It falls to him to show him the code, and make it understandable to one bound by his own perspective of time, such as it is.

"Ranma, you told me before you were raised with a code. It was 'The duty of a martial artist is to protect those weaker than yourself'" Ranma nods to his strange teacher.

"Isn't that a short sighted code?"

"No! that is my duty. I learned what I know to protect those who can't protect themselves." Ranma said with pride.

Val 'En took out a silver ball from a cage that sat on a self in his room. "See this Ranma? What is it?"

Ranma looked at it. It was a silver ball with some strange chi or magic in it.

"A magic ball of some kind, it seems like it wants you to want to hold it"

Val 'en nodded. "Good read. This is an egg. Would you agree with me that whatever is in this egg is defenseless compared to you and i?"

"Yes, it's an egg, it's not sentient" Ranma had no problems if the creature was not sentient, or if it was food.

"No, that is where you are wrong. It IS sentient. It's awake enough to want to make you touch it. I can sense you and know that it needs to be close to you, to gain energy. This is an egg of a Succubus. So would that still need to be protected?"

"Uhmmm" Ranma was trying to see how that fit into his personal code. He already knew all about how dangerous Succubus were.

"Well its dangerous, or it could be I think. But did you tell me that everything chose its own destiny. Anyone and anything could choose its path if it wanted too?"

Val 'en was surprised at this. Here was a way within the code of the hunter that worked even with his limited code that Ranma held too.

"Yes, I did. We have not covered the code of responsibility so I guess now is a good time. We can use this egg as the example. The code is ' If one releases another, from a just hunt then they are responsible for what the hunted does. They must protect them, Guide them and put them down if they fall. The hunted can be forgiven the hunt only if the hunter is willing to join unto it'. So Ranma are you willing to kill this being of the thirst right now knowing what it is?"

"No, I don't think it would be right. Even if it's one of the queens of the thirst does not mean it has to be evil. It's like you told me of the great lights could fall, but if they fought they could come back to the light, should they chose too."

"Then are you willing to risk every day having this nameless thirst consume you, to keep it from the path of consuming your brothers? Remember these things are absolutes, like everything in the code. If it were to escape you for example and kill a brother you would be held as accountable as it was."

"I guess for me to follow how I see what you told me, and what I personally believe, then yes I guess I would."

Val 'en smiled. "Well young one, be glad that is not a choice you have to make. Val 'en quietly put the egg back in the cage that he took it from.

Some strange time later.

Ranma was a respected hunter known for his kindness to others and his fierceness against the thirst. He walked through the quiet parts of the hunter city, seeking time alone. Val 'en had been teaching him some basic magic and it was terribly difficult. He had long ago given that idea up that he never could lose. Magic proved to him how he could not obtain some things. In the quiet place he found, he pulled his mind down, and started first by expanding his mind, before the contraction into the state of One as Val 'en called it. Being one with Kosh. He felt this terrible hunger, and agony coming from some place near to him. He moved quickly thinking one of the thirst had somehow snuck into the city.

He eventually found what he was feeling. Chained to the wall, was a young Succubus, her eyes shown with the madness of her kind, and a terrible hunger lay with in her. She was too weak to even feed from any distance anymore. She still hungered though, and raged against her chains and her captors. Ranma was surprised to find her here like this.

Val 'en walked in with one of the new hunters. Val 'en took stock of seeing Ranma here.

"Ranma, remember our conversation of the code of responsibility. I know you still for all it is want to help it. Are you going to knowing that you will have to keep it from harming the others?"

Ranma looked at Val 'en with a pained look and walked away.

But he came back. Every day. He looked at the creature. Every day Val 'en would come in and watch with him. Every day Val 'en would ask and each day Ranma leave.

He knew what the cost would be. To him and too the others. He knew that succubus was as dangerous as anything he ever had faced, and yet it was not her powers that drew him back, but his own compassion. He wanted to help her. He wanted to stop her suffering. But he didn't want to kill one who had never harmed another.

Then one day Ranma went and walked closer to the creature. It was by now too weak even to look up at him.

Val 'en walked in, with 3 of the other senior hunters with him.

"Ranma, are you.."

"Yes" came a very soft reply. "I am willing to feed her myself, and hold myself accountable."

Urak looked at him "you could end her suffering by ending her existence as well. That would also be a kindness for her"

Ranma looked at them all "then how could she make a choice? How can she now? I assume her responsibility Val 'en. I will at least give her the chance to make that choice."

Aluc looked at him "you will bear her sins as well. Can you take her into your heart, and bear that within you?"

"Val 'En did when he forgave you. How could I do any less for one who has never done evil. I would bear no since of hers, she has none yet. But I feel we are sinning everyday leaving her like this." Ranma was calmer now, he somehow felt this was the correct path to take.

Val 'en smiled and looked at him. "You are a fine hunter Ranma, May Kosh guide you in this." He hands Ranma a key, and a Kris blade. It was a blade made for Avatars to kill the greater thirsts. "you now have the tools. Use them wisely."

Ranma approached her and ran his hand across her head, feeding her.

For great periods in time after he fed her. He also created a special prison for her. It gave her some movement ability without the ability to leave yet. She needed to be taught slowly that she had a choice. Then at one point in time, when they were fully bonded, Kosh bathed her in light, and brought her sentience forward.

***Ranma, My Gift to you, and her gift from me. In my eyes this is your daughter. Protect, guide, train and love her***

Ranma looked at the fully self-aware girl, who now looked very similar to him. "Then I name you Casselia, Light from the darkness"

This was the birth of Cassy.

**&%^$#!#$%^&**

The remaining outers, stood on the ship under the clear starry sky. Few knew that she could scry better than mars, across distances, under the light of her planet lighting her mirror. She looked deep into the mirror seeking to find what the scouts were doing this day. Their boat was on the other side of the world from Japan, and the first thing that appeared was something blocking her reading. Then the scene cleared a bit they could see Usagi sitting on a couch, with Hotaru next to her. The mirror moved a little to one side and they could see the form of a boy looking at down at the Neo-Princess, who was kneeling before him. There was an odd static in the reading but both of them could make out Usa saying something about offering him her life and death. There was the start of black flames growing on the boy and then Michiru' s mirror cracked.

"That proves it. Pluto was right; we have to go kill that bastard." Haruka said.

"No, I think we need more information. If he is THIS powerful, enough to crack my mirror then we need to find how to beat him. He enslaved the queen and princess and was able to destroy Pluto. I don't think just walking up and killing him will work. Also it may harm the queen and the princess." Michiru counseled.

Haruka looked enraged but agreed. They needed to get back as soon as possible and see if there were any unaffected Senshi, and how best to hurt this Ranma.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Ranma looked at Usa and waited for her to wake up. He had time and this needed to be done correctly. The others were all relived that he was not going to kill Usa, but some (like Usagi) were worried about this judgment that would be passed soon.

Usa started to wake up and saw Ranma kneeing in front of her as she lay on the ground. Ranma handed her a glass of water.

"First drink this. Your judgment can wait that long at least and I want you to be in full control of your mind as it is passed."

Usa drank the entire glass not in one gulp, nor dragging it out. She drank it like a lady then nodded to Ranma.

"Saotome-san I am ready to hear the judgment."

"The last code of the hunter states that "if a life is given freely then that life it to be respected even if that life had been lost in some measure it was now back in the fold of the light. It is easier to give your life for friends and loved ones than it is for those who you have reason to and fear or have wronged. All can choose their fate." This is the judgment in accordance of the code of hunters and the guidance of Kosh.

"Serenity. You have taken my daughter from me so you shall assume her place. You will follow my instructions, heed my words and fight the minions of the thirst. You will use no magic, will not transform and not rely on anything inhuman while in Cassy's debt. I will never call you daughter, and you may never call me father for you are no replacement for Cassy. But you will endeavor to Do her duties and take her restrictions until either she releases you from this task herself. Or until your own death.

Do you understand what your judgment is too be?"

Usa nodded. As he had spoken she had done the math. She knew that her life would not be long but at least in small part she would help. Fighting those creatures without the aids of magic or the armor would just get her killed. "Yes Saotome-san I understand and accept."

"You will be bound as well by her bindings. You will not raise a single finger against any human or anything that is not of the thirst. No threats no violence. Nothing no matter what they are doing to you.

Usa nodded.

"And you will not know the touch of a lover of any kind until she releases you. She was forever bound to be unable to have them, thus as her stand in you will too. You will live here, and work here. Helping my family as she would have done. And you will remain Chaste until such time as she either releases you or you die."

Usa nodded at this too. It surprised her a lot. The other women though were very sad for the young girl. To be forever denied even the thought of a love. That was hard.

"Do you accept this judgment of your own free will and without reservation?"

"Yes Saotome-san" Usa bowed her head to him.

Then now understand my role to you. We are bound, until either she releases you or you die. We will learn to sense one another, through our bonding. I must teach you to protect yourself so you will not be killed by your judgment. I will protect you from harm as I would protect Cassy, for until she returns you are her stand in. And I must train you to be a hunter as she was. She was taken from Kosh's service so it falls on me to ensure you can do his bidding as well."

He pulled the crystal necklace off of his neck and held it before him. "This is the resting place of my daughter. You will now bear her and give your life to make her strong again. In time you will learn from one another and help each other along. As long as this light remains, she still exists. You may never take it off until she is ready to leave the crystal behind."

Usa drops her head as Ranma places it around her head.

"Now two more things. If I were you I would get really used to taking long baths, lots of them. She will insist. And please from this point forward call me Ranma." It was a little forced but he smiled at her. The biggest thing she noticed however was that his eyes softened and she could see a swirling sea deep within them. Usa looked away blushing.

Maybe things were not quite as bad as she had originally thought.

**&%^%$#!#$%^&**

Shampoo walked through Nermia with her two children. She took them to all of the major sites that she remembered from all of those years before. Story after story was retold to them as she pointed out that Here was the ran men shop they ran, and this was the old lady who always doused Ranma with water. She took them to the school, and showed them where all of those adventures took place and she took them to the old Tofu clinic, telling them about the skeleton he used to dance around with. Finally as the light was fading from the sky, they stopped outside the gates, of the new Ono clinic and told them about many things that happened there.

"Tomorrow we shall visit here properly, but tonight I think we need food and sleep"

The trio walked back to a hotel after eating dinner at a Okonomiyaki store they found.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Usagi went home. It had been super tiring though at least he had not killed her. As for the rest she did not know what to think. She was overloaded and needed to sleep, to know what she felt about kind of losing her daughter on top of losing at least one of her friends today. Ranma for his part seemed to be forgiving even if it was from his code not

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Hotaru stayed behind a bit longer.

"Saotome san, I have a question"

"Please call me Ranma" he said as he smiled at the girl. Once things had mellowed out she had changed back. Nodoka and Nabiki were helping Usa get set up in a spare room. As she was from the future, she had no family to report too, and her mother already knew what was going on.

"Ranma, you said you were going to teach Usa how to fight, to hunt those things. Can you teach me too?" she blinked up at him. Hotaru wanted to be the best she could. She also, Now that she didn't have to fear him killing anyone, Had a LITTLE of the inners views on boys. Knowing Usa had told her in at least one future she had been married to him well…

Ranma thought really one for a second or two. "Yeah Hotaru was it? Just be here and I will teach you Just realize that it will be ALL of being a hunter I will teach" He smiled at her, and she wanted to just melt on the spot.

'And Usa gets to live with him? No no no Hotaru stop thinking like Venus' she thought to herself.

Later that night Tofu called to tell him that his school application had been pushed through. Both him and Cassy were set to enter Juuban high school tomorrow. Ranma thanked him and thought about it. Usa would need to enter the school as Cassy Saotome, but she can use the nickname Usa given to her by him. Given his luck he wonders how many of the other scouts would wind up be in in the same school.

As the morning rose, and the sun first started its climb across the sky, Hotaru trudged to her new sensei home. When she got there however it appeared that Usa had been working the same series of 4 or 5 movements for at least an hour. Ranma watched her and gave mild corrections to her as she practiced.

Ranma saw her approach "Good morning Taru-chan, today I want you just to walk in place and watch Usa. Starting tomorrow you will be doing some of these things yourself." Again that brilliant smile at her.

For another hour they worked with Hotaru stopping often. She did not have the stamina to do as much as Usa.

"Taru change go get cleaned up before your school." Said Ranma. "Usa, now I will show you what you WILL learn."

Ranma started on of the more advance Katas' one based on Floating through the air more than raw power. Usa was amazed by how he moved. Twenty minutes later that kata had finished and Usa could not keep dirty thoughts out of her head.

"Now go clean yourself so I can then we will leave.

Nadoka had made two Bentos, and once Hotaru showed up she made another. Later the three teens headed to school together.

They entered to find the school counselor. When they got there, there were boxes and notes everywhere. A small plaque said "**Kyou Fujibayashi, Student councilor." **

Usa was kind of concerned. She thought that Setsuna was councilor here.

Kyou looked at the teens.

"and just who are you?

"Ohh I am Ranma Saotome, and this is my sister Cassy though she prefers the name Usa. Sorry about this.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

The day before

Principle Tanaka looked at his staff in the morning staff meeting.

I have a couple of announcements this morning, so everyone take a seat. First Ms. Meoh has requested and starts on a leave of absence. So to replace her I would like to introduce Ms. Kyou Fubibaiyashi who will take over her councilor and interviewer duties."

Kyou stands up, and bows to everyone. She a medium build woman in her early twenties and long purple hair. "It is my honor to work with everyone. I place myself in your hands." She bowed again.

Mr. Tanaka continued.

"Also, as a few of you are aware, tomorrow we should be getting a couple of new transfer students, one of which is very special. He is the child of The Ranma Saotome, who has been on a 10 year training trip, just like his father was. Also like Ranma he has as the rumored "water curse" though apparently not as bad and Ranma Sr. So we as a teaching staff should take great care when dealing with him, and his sister Cassy. My associate said he is a master martial artist, easily as good as Ranma Sr, if any of you can believe that. Dr Tofu suggested that we allow him to form his own club, training in his art, rather than force him to join any established groups. He also encouraged us to bring up the idea of representing the school with his club in some of the inter-school martial arts competitions."

Mr. Chou was the coach and advisor for all of the sports teams. "With all due respect Tanaka-san, but we already have a martial arts club here. I fail to see why we would need another or why we would let some family style club represent our school" Mr. Chou had not really known of the stories about super powerful martial artists, or this one who was referred too in the traditional martial arts schools as 'The God killer'. He taught and believed in a newer composite form of fighting called mixed martial arts. He was completely unaware that the original mixed martial arts WAS the lesser Tendo form of Anything Goes.

"We shall have to see how Ranma stacks up against the fighters in the MMS club then Mr. Chou" Mr. Tanaka replied. "Perhaps we can have a challenge match between your captain and Saotome-san, if he agrees"

"I know my club is up for it. Who is going to be the advisor for his club, assuming he decides to form it?" said Mr. Chou.

The principle thought a moment. "Most of you are booked, so Ms. Fubibaiyashi, are you ok with being the advisor?"

" Of course it would be my pleasure." Nodded Kyou.

Of course the next day Kyou started to regret her decision. 'How could this woman find any records with this mess? It's like she was almost deliberate in making records unreadable or impossible to find. 'In truth Setsuna had done just that. She had a backup of all of the records, for her actual needs. The rest were so convoluted that you could read them on way to show that Usagi was married to Ami, and the direct heir to the emperor of japan. They were THAT bad.

It was into this mess that Ranma and Usa walked into, a mess of Kyou trying to organize the impossible.

After the initial introductions Kyou starts spelling things out for him

"Mr. Saotome-san, While I do not have your records in front of me for which I apologize for I do have all the information I need to help you and your sister transition here" Kyou started.

"Kyou-sensei, please call me Ranma. Now how do you wish us to proceed?" Ranma replayed.

"We are going to start you as a second year here with a one hour per day tutoring session for you both until your tutor feels you are ready to go solo. Your tutoring session will be in place of both of your PE classes as we feel that you do not really need the type of PE that we could offer here."

Ranma nodded at this. "Makes sense"

Kyou smiled "Ok one other thing. Our school has a mandatory club attendance for second years. I know you're a few weeks late into the session, however we would like you to consider not joining the school martial arts club and instead off a club of your own, that focuses on the Anything goes style of the art. We would wave membership requirements initially, and let you have total control over the membership. We would also like you to consider representing our school in some of the interschool competitions. We understand you are at or near the grandmaster level, and to be honest it would make us as a school look very attractive."

Ranma looked over at Usa "you want me to continue to train you here as well as home?"

Usa nodded "As you wish"

Ranma looked back at Kyou. "Kyou sensei as far as starting the club, I am fairly sure that I may already have the three members I would need. They are current students of mine. I have no problems in starting a club to teach the basic forms of the Saotome style of anything goes. As far as competing to represent the school, it will have to be something I think about. We would however need an advisor I think for our club"

She smiled at him "That is my honor Ranma-san. Now we shall take you to your class, I will introduce you to your tutor first, and then we will introduce you to your new class. Is this acceptable for you as well Cassy?"

Usa nodded "Yes Sensei, but please just call me Usa, Thanks".

The three walk down the hallway and then walks upstairs eventually they make it to room 2-b. "please wait here a moment." The councilor tells them.

Kyou walks into the class and a few moments later she walks back out into the hall with Ami in tow.

"Hey! You're one of th…" Ranma starts. Ami glares a little at him and Usa elbows him in the side.

Ranma realized that this must be a secret from everyone else.

"Ohh I am sorry, I thought you were one of Dr Tofu's daughters. You just look a lot like her." Ranma bow to Ami. "Please forgive my confusion." Ranma was a little better at lying than he was 15 years ago.

Ami bowed back "No I am not one of Dr Tofu's family but perhaps my mother knows him, She also is a doctor" She stood back up, and looked intently at both Ranma and Usa. Usa blushed a bit and made waving motions with her hands.

"I am sure we will all get to know each other much better, since I am your tutor." Ami seemed to have this odd smirk on her face. Ranma just groaned. "I have this funny feeling your training is going to be rough as mine is"

Ami smiled brightly "there is no reason to be afraid Ranma-kun, I am sure I won't have to break any bones to get this knowledge into you"

Kyou looked amused as she watched the three. They all knew each other, that much was obvious, no matter how they tried to couch their terms. It was almost exactly like the act Tomoyo-kun used to pull when he was trying to hide the fact that they were engaged from her sister. Ahh well, youth.

Kyou led the three of them back into the classroom.

The teacher of the home room class was a Ms. Shizuka Nekonome, and for some reason she made Ranma a little nervous. He no longer had the abject terror of cats, but they still made him somewhat uncomfortable, and this woman just exuded the feline feeling. Looking around the room he was three more of the cheerleaders, Usagi, the brown haired lightening one and the one who seemed to have a problem with drool. Ranma shook his head. "It's all going to start up again, I just know it. He leaned over to Usa and whispered to her.

"Usa, I can see how this is going to go down now. At least a couple of those cheerleaders are going to turn out to be fiancée's. I am surprised we don't have a girl or guy who always gets lost named Hibiki in this class yelling about how I made their life hell."

Usa looked at him amused. "With my friends yeah probably, you are prime boyfriend material."

Ranma sighed again.

"Class" yowled Nekonome-sensei. "We have two new students starting today. The teacher stretched a bit and sauntered over to Usa. "This is Cassy Saotome". "Usa bow "Please call me Usa." All of the boys looked at her very intently. "And this fine specimen is Ranma Saotome" she purred. Ranma jumped a little when she moved closer to him. The looks the girls gave him was just as…. Hungry.

"Ranma, Cassy since your tutor is Ami why don't you take the two seats near her?" The cheerleaders all looked at Ami like she had grown a new head. Ami just smiled that "I ate the canary and blamed it on you" look.

"Sure Sensei". Kyou said "Wait a moment Ranma you need to show everyone the curse." Again the boys started examining Ranma closely. Ranma nodded. It was a given now that he explain this, and frankly it no longer bothered him. Balance was a way of life for a hunter and him if anyone was balanced. In fact the water issue had slowed down tremendously once he finally accepted that he was Ranma the form did not matter. Kyou brought a warm and cold tub of water, and Ranma explained how and why the curse worked. It was in fact so matter of fact done that none of the girls even assumed he was doing anything perverted.

In truth it was almost a calm introduction.

&^%$#!#$%^&

The night before, Ami dreamed.

Ami walked up to where the meeting was and only Usagi and the cats were thee. Usagi smiled a very tired smile at her.

"Ami-chan come and sit with me." Usagi motioned to the bench.

"Are you all right Usagi-chan" Ami asked

"Not really no. I just dressed down Setsuna, threatened her and then placed a spell on her to not try and alter my family anymore. That was….Draining." Usagi stretched her neck to the left and right, a couple of loud pops were heard. "I really need to stop being so tense."

Ami nodded at her. "So we are next huh."

Usagi looked at her. "You? No not really you're my friend and you remembered that. But it seems the others don't want to remember that we are friends or that I love them, so I will have to remind them about duty rather than love"

Ami nodded. She knew how hard this was going to be for Usagi. Ami stood up and transformed. "Your Highness, please allow me to be your guardian once more." Usagi just jumped up and hugged Mercury/Ami. "Thank you" Usagi whispered.

Mokoto dreamed.

She arrived with the others at 3, just like Usagi "asked" them too. No one expected that she would be on time, much less beat them all there and be in Serenity mode. To either side of her stood Sailor Mercury, and the cats.

Makoto, Minako and Rei all looked uncomfortable as they looked on the others. What Rei had thought was going to be a four on one argument, was starting to look like a dressing down rather than anything that could be defended against.

"I want each of you to look around. Outside of this tower lies the city of Tokyo, where we intended to rebuild humanity. Mokoto do even remember WHY you were given your powers? Do any of you? Was it to run around playing super hero or was it to really save our race in the end?" Serenity was not giving any of them a chance to respond to these questions. Mokoto though knew what she would have answered. Yes she was so wrapped up in the monster of the week syndrome that she forgot, the earth was going to freeze, and only a few who would NEED her would be left. Mokoto just bowed her head.

Minako dreams.

Serenity continues her rant. Looking directly at Minako. "You Minako-san have been doing this longer than the rest of us, but you seem to think this "gig" is about picking up men, rather than fighting for something anymore. Do you really want to know why you can't find anyone? Really?" Minako nodded slowly. "It's because you give off this field of "I don't just act shallow and flighty, I make it into an art form. I won't be loyal to you!. Mina, everyone we have all DIED together. More than lived but DIED. And I have been there bringing you back. I don't expect adoration, hell at this point I don't even expect gratitude, but I do expect commitment. Something you are sorely lacking in. Are any of you committed to our path? You need to choose, Now."

Rei dreamed.

"I am not buying this Usagi. You can't order us around, we decide our own future." Growled Rei at her. "What gives you the right to tell us how to use our powers?"

Serenity just looked at Rei with sadness. "Your powers Rei? Really yours? Have you forgotten already?" Serenity pulls out the great crystal. "Do any of you remember what this is? Can you remember what it can do? If you are so tired of being a Senshi Rei I can certainly oblige you. I should just take them from you now. You either hurt badly or killed an Innocent who was SAVING your teammates. She was INNOCENT Rei. She SAVED the lives of Minako, of Mokoto, of the innocents there. And you lashed her with flames first and decided to let the afterlife sort it all out. What kind of HERO kills an innocent Rei. "Serenity turned and walked to the window.

"Who here is ready to quit. Who is ready for me to strip you of your star crystals and give them to people who are more willing to be loyal, to our duty if nothing else?"

Mokoto reacted first "what do you want me to do Us.. uhmm. You're Majesty?"

"Remember why you were reborn. Come and help me save what remains of humanity. You don't have to be my friend, but I do demand that you help me save everyone from what is coming"

Very softly Minako spoke "Will you still have us as friend's?"

Serenity smiled "Anytime you want. I still love all of you, I am just disappointed with you." Minako started to cry softly and start to move to hug Serenity.

"This is BS Usagi. I won't follow you and you can have my powers over my cold dead fingers." Rei stormed out.

Serenity sighed.

&^%$#!#$%^&

The next day Rei comes home from ditching school. Her mind had been awhirl ever since that discussion on the tower. It was a lot to think about. And being alone did not help the situation. She swept the yard, tended the fire, made dinner, and started reading the scrolls more. Anything she could do to try and calm down. But the anguish kept hammering her like. After a lot of thought on this she decided it was time to talk to her grandfather.

For hours they talked. He kept asking her questions which she answered as she could without telling him about her moonlighting gig. Eventually she came to realize that if she was right or wrong didn't matter, that her friends and her were still together, that was what was important. What was important when compared to friends and the family that loved her. When it came down to it, even if she was angry, she still loved Usagi. She still wanted to be there with her, and to fight over manga and cookies with her. Just like she was sure Usagi wanted to be with her.

She would go and apologize to her, and clear things up.

""Grandfather I will be going, I need to talk to Usagi"

"Good luck child"

Rei felt hundreds of times better as she walked to the entrance of the shrine, to leave and make her way to Usagi's house. Walking into the shrine was an old friend, Auntie Nodoka.

"Hi Auntie, Sorry but I am in a hurry, Grandfather is in the dining room though," Rei turned to leave. The sound of steel on steel was heard, softly in the hall. Rei stopped, and looked again at her "aunt".

"Hino-san, I believe we need to talk."

Rei looked very confused, about the whole thing. Well everything but the Katana that rested in Nodoka's hands.

"I need you to explain why my son, Ranma, has said that you are involved in my grand-daughters tragedy. What exactly did you do to harm my grand-daughter, Hino-san?"

Granddaughter? Ranma? Granddaughter? Nodoka?

"Ohh Crap!"


	11. Chapter 02X dreams of times gone forth

**Chapter 1X**

**Dreams of times gone forth**

There at the gates, stood that dark shadow. It held a vaguely human appearance, and stood in the same place unmoving watching the gates. On the opposite side of those same gates, a shimmer, like the shadow but made of light could be seen. This on also stood unmoving at the gates, looking within them.

A flat and emotional voice could be more felt than heard passing between them.

"That was a good move" one said to the other.

"I doubt you will let that be enough though" was the reply.

"No I still have moves of my own. Let's try this."

Usa, Cassy and Setsuna alone shared this dream.

A woman delivers a staff to a young boy. She holds her own staff, and the boy's followers stand back away from her. Soon this boy grows, into full form, and moves after Ranma once again.. Ranma this time is not alone, and once more Ranma wins his war, again. The boy turned god, fighting against Ranma was a forgone conclusion of course. Unlike last time, Saffron faced a warrior rather than just a boy. This was a test more than anything else. Not of the god, or boy but the one who delivered the staff. She learned there were limits to the spell placed on her.

The shadows come in this place too. And they are dealt with the same as before. Here there was an imbalance. A mild bit of doubt in the mind of one, lead to one who was once part of a pair to be wed, being the bridesmaid instead. A ceremony still took place, but just one champion, all in black, joined with a warrior in black. When the final entombment occurred however, the bridesmaid entered into the crystal, and pushed the warrior aside. There was a mother's ineptitude that caused the shift. The one who was meant to be trapped became the one who was meant to rule in the queens stead. The child of the great Ungol falls quickly, stopping further incursions.

A change occurs in the warrior and the goddess who holds with him. Anger, true rage comes them both, and they both seek a cure for their friend. They find their cure. And it comes on wings of magic and steel.

On earth centuries later the Inners are dealing protecting the tower itself, from in the invading black moon family. But inners from the past come and save Dark lady, and end the war. The remains of the dark clan, return to their own places to lick their wounds only to find hollowed out shells, and burning bases. A new force is advancing across the system. One that bears the silver emblem of the Full moon, and the black sigil of the house of Saturn.

The Empress of the Silver Empire, she who used to be Queen of the planet of Saturn, looked out at her daughter and son in law with a cold pride. Ruthless and cunning her daughter had grown into. Her husband was a force of nature on the battlefield, earning himself the rank of Dijacamo, the lord of war.

The ships surrounded the system, and moved inwards. Only a few days had the inners to recover, when a new force appeared. A very tired queen Serenity after weeks of war spoke to the communicator and a hardened warrior queen appeared.

"Serenity, you have abused the powers granted to you by the planets. You, in the moment when a friend of the crown was no longer useful, you tried to imprison him. He was my Son. And you tried to imprison him. Instead you imprisoned your OWN daughter in his stead.

Setsuna was too tired to think clearly, and she had only just gotten out of a very draining and protracted war.

"I am the queen here. Not you Guardian… you forget your place."

"No Serenity you forget yours. Your rule is the inner planets, but you have forgotten who has control of the reaches. You have also forgotten why the silence was created. Little Queen. You have one more chance. Give me the crystal, I will release your daughter and let you live in a quiet exile as your daughter begins her rule. You have 1 hour to decide. In the mean time I shall provide your population and your throne with some entertainment."

All of the screens in the tower, along with any working screen anywhere on earth, started broadcasting a horrific death.

Lady Princess Saturn was a terrifying force to see. With everyone else she was kind, with her husband loving beyond belief. Watching them together gave the Empire a glimpse into what life could be, how love could exist. Her greatest regret was allowing her best friend, her best part of her, and the only woman she had ever wanted to share Ranma with, talk her out of a joint marriage. For thousands of years, the darkness resided in her. Even her sister, Cassy, could not take this one bit of rage from her.

The monitors showed a chained Senshi, in the middle of an arena. The object of the Empire's wrath was chained down, and up to her walked the most regal woman in the Empire. The Heir of the empire and daughter of the Elder queen, who once was called Saturn. The Heir approached the Time guardian.

"Setsuna, you have forgotten your place. You have forgotten who empowered the outers, and who gave you your star seed. You manipulated the memories of the young scouts to try and make them forget why the house of Saturn possessed this power. To forget who the silence was formed to balance against. The Dark Lady stood over Setsuna, glaive in hand.

"By my right as the power of the outreaches, and my first act on the day I attain supremacy of the empire, shall be to strip you of your real power. I return your seed back unto me, and grant it to another far more worthy of it".

The glaive shown with a great light wrapping the time guard drawing out a park purple crystal. As the light of the glaive shown through it, the color was purified, and a new white crystal lay in the hands of the lady of Saturn.

While Setsuna was still chained on the floor of the area, The Queen of the Empire stepped forward. She held a silver and black crown, with a crystal that appeared to be a dark and light crystal wrapped around each other.

"As Queen of the empire, I have seen too much and am ready to take my rest. I today shall crown a new Emperor, one that is beloved by me, as by my people. Only my daughter holds him in higher regard, and he returns it. Ranma, I call you forth, answer my call, and due your duty to the remaining members of our race. Be our Emperor, defend our Realms and love our people."

Ranma stepped forward, knelt and the old Saturn placed the crown of the Emperor on his head.

"I announce the first emperor in our realm since the fall of Serenity the fourth. Ranma, of Saiel." Setsuna watched impassively as Ranma stood up by the side of the old queen. She took her own crown up and handed it to the new Emperor.

"You are the heart of our empire. Grant mercy when it's needed, and wrath when it is not. Thank you for bringing my daughter back to me."

The Ex-queen bowed to the new Emperor.

The emperor looked out.

"I hold to no tradition, other than protection of my people, and those I love. With that in mind my Beloved will you join me?"

The Dark Lady Saturn walked up to him and knelt. Everyone was in surprised as he took his own crown off knelt with her, and handed the emperors crown to her.

"Please, as we are one, neither of us is over another, together should be never one above another." And the two placed the others crown on together. They stood and rather than a great speech, came a single kiss.

"The Empress Saturn turned back to the comvid.

"Serenity, your answer?"

"We will fight to the last. I hold the crystal you cannot defeat me."

Hotaru looked at her husband. Here was the decision that while they had talked about, Hotaru even after all of these years did not want to give.

Ranma kissed his wife one more time. Then to the comlinks and across all of the screens still active on the earth.

"As the ice came before, Fire shall come now. Burn them."

Later the silence is released into the gates again, destroying them utterly, but leaving the system behind.

. While the defenders of Serenity fell, the city itself was left alone. It was by brute force in the end that the Empire brought the tower under its command.

A statue was taken from the city, along with the Queen and King.

Three days later, a woman in a crystal statue was slowly coming back to life, under the guiding hands of the magic and medicine of Silver Empire. As she opened her eyes, too look into the very concerned pair's eyes. Hotaru spoke first.

"Usa-chan if you will still have me, would you marry me?"

A second coronation was held, one in which all three lights shone as one.

All of the inners had fallen but Mercury who was spared in the end by the Emperors mercy. It was Mercury that the emperor entrusted with the system, telling her she needed to rebuild what was lost. In time, she arose a state that was a worthy addition to the empire. And her Daughter married Usa's son, and became the next Empress. The circle had been joined once more

The star seed of Pluto was passed to one more worthy, and the Queen of the Reaches was named. Cassy had become a queen in her own right, Eternal for her own reasons. She faithfully defended generations of emperors and empresses, even long after her father had passed on. The reaches themselves in the end became known as a place of rest and comfort, protected by a still pure soul.

A second coronation was held, one in which all three lights shone as one.

The queen was banished as her daughter had been, with the kings arms wrapped around her for eternity.

A thousand years later, children would play in a park, where that crystal resided, in front of the sign

"Here stands a love that shall last eternally. Weep for them."

The two shadows stared across the gates at each other.

"What did that prove?"

"That even if you win in part now you will still lose in the end."

"Who is that a victory for?"

"The children who will follow. The very souls you and I are fighting for."

The time gates fade as well as the dream.

Setsuna awakes in her bed. While this path is closed to her, she knows that she can now get around her curse. There ARE ways she can strike, If she chooses to.

Usa wakes as she dozed in the Furo. Most of the details are lost to her, but she does have this strong feeling that no matter what happens, Hotaru, Ranma and her will always find a way.

Cassy, residing

in her crystal learns all of it, and can see the only really important thing.


	12. Chapter 9 Planning the schools v2

**Chapter 11 Planning for the schools.**

Rei sees an inch of the blade shining in the light. 'Ranma, why didn't I catch that? I have heard about him for most of my life, from her and now I am going to be killed by aunty'. Rei is as white as a sheet, as fire dances in Nodoka's eyes.

"Well girl" Nodoka hissed. "Why is my son so upset" her low voice starts to rise as she talks. "Rei, What did you DO to my GRANDAUGHTER" she is practically screaming now.

Rei keeps backing away from her. Nodoka is worse than any monster she has had to fight.

"ANSWER ME! Why was I not able to meet my granddaughter? What Did You Do!"

Rei was sobbing in fear now. She couldn't tell her. The secret would be blown if she did that. But without that what could she say.

"All I can say is she got hurt, badly because I thought she was a demon."

"A What! You hurt my family because you thought she was a DEMON!" the sword starts being pulled out, "You have no idea what a demon is. You play at being a miko and have the idea that you can attack my own blood, without penalty!" The sword is fully drawn now and its scabbard is tossed aside. "Blood My own Blood." Her voice drops low again. "I am not the one you wanted to call for blood Hino-san. I can be the one to takes it…"

At this Nodoka's felt pressure on her neck, and she staggered trying to keep from falling to the ground. Her anger and will keeps her upright, but the strike she was preparing ends.

Grandfather Hino stepped around Nodoka to see if Rei had been hurt yet. "No-chan, I am disappointed you would spill blood on the shrines grounds. You know what that would cause." Nodoka still stands; a testament to her will but cannot move to strike now.

"Now Rei, Nodoka, We WILL go inside and discuss this. It sounded like you were about to call a blood debt, and I would hate to see that between ladies who have known each other so long." He looks at Rei. "For everyone's sake I hope there is no basis for this argument. No Hino would attack a child, or an innocent." Rei moved to try and help Nodoka, but thought better of it as even through the nerve strike Nodoka started to move when Rei got close. Not far mind you but far more than grandfather Hino would have thought possible for anyone.

As the Hino master picked up and carried the much larger woman he idly said to Rei "If this is as bad as she says it is, and if she really has this right, I cannot protect you dear. Bear that in mind while we talk."

After they are all arranged around a table, while Nodoka still cannot move, he gingerly brings over the Holiest relic of the shrine, a wisp of the Lady's' cloak. It was reported to be a piece of cloth that has been guarded by the Hino clan since the first emperor. He gingerly uses it to touch the Saotome honor blade, taking it from Nodoka's hands.

The cloth begins to glow, and the three watch as the blade is turned white, and a new tip appears on the end.

"It looks like she has told the absolute truth. The goddess herself has restored even the broken bits of the family's honor, and the cloth has a black thread in it now." Hino-san shakes his head "Rei-chan, my child what have you done?"

Rei is openly crying now. She faces her death, but more than that, she could feel the Holy flame, that warmth that always covered her, growing cold.

"Nodoka-sama, I am in the wrong. I hurt her, because of my pride. I truly thought she was a demon, and I attacked her with flame."

Grandfather Hino looked at her. "Rei-chan it is a pity that night I asked you to come home, to meet with guests you elected to stay out, she was here then. You would have been able to take her measure then." Hino-san looked down.

Rei's guilt came on even stronger. She had stayed with Mamoru that night.

He walked over to Nodoka and pressed a release point.

"No-chan, you have a right to a blood debt. I do understand why my granddaughter attacked your granddaughter however. Your granddaughter WAS in fact a demon, but one Ranma had taught to be pure. I have never seen her like before."

Nodoka started to again grow angry and in looking at her old friend, as one grandparent to another she just broke down and slumped forward. "The Usa girl mentioned the same thing when she was asking my son not to hold anyone else responsible for this tragedy. She offered her life for my granddaughters, in payment for Rei's actions. I have never seen anyone who was more the ideal of Samurai than her when facing seppuku. It was amazing really. Even what she said was her last request to Usagi was one of pure honor, she asked Usagi, no demanded Usagi treat Ranma as a son like as Usagi would have treated Usa. That girl offered everything to cover for Rei's actions and now she bears the burden for it. I wish things had been different, there is a girl anyone would have been proud to call daughter."

Rei was stunned. Chibi-Usa offered up her life for Rei's even after what she said and did to Usa and Usagi? Her last thoughts were for Ranma, the man who oversaw her own death? Who was she to hold anything when she did this?

As Nodoka was being moved into her grandfather lap to rest from the anger and hate she had tried to release, Rei ran out of the shrine crying. 'My god what have I done? Usa is gone and Usagi must have known. That's the only explanation for her to have been Serenity. She must have been crushed inside, needing us, but I had to yell at her. We had to have taken it out on her." Rei ran off towards Usagi's house, trying desperately to out run her own guilt.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Haruka tapped her fingers harshly on the armrest of the plane. They needed to be back yesterday, not waiting for a 10 hour flight to take place. Michiru just sat in her seat, holding her mirror. The lines of cracking were slowly healing themselves.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Setsuna re-examined a message she had sent herself right after the fall. She had always assumed it was about Serenity the fourth, but now was not quite so sure. "There are limits to her words that will come to haunt her. Find the limits and your mind will be yours again". This was the message passed down through the ages. She teleported back to her room in her home seeking some comfort in her own bed. As long as she did not run into Usa or Usagi, the house was ok to hide in.

In front of the gates, a shadow shape stood examining them, precisely where Setsuna had stood before. It was motionless. Light passed through its being. It stood at the edges visibility very much like a dark trick of the eyes.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

After school the anything goes martial arts club gathers in the open yard of the school. All three of its members, Ranma, Hotaru and Usa are present, along with the Inners who all were expecting to see Ranma show his form.

"Today is our first meeting and our first trip." Started Ranma. "I am going to observe the Tendo branch of the school, so we will take a quick train to Nermia and see what that branch of the school has to offer."

Hotaru and Usa nod, and pick up their things. Of the 4 inners present only Mokoto stays behind, walking with them to the train station.

"Ranma-san" Mokoto started "I would like to know if I can join your club. I know you have total control over the membership, and I would like to learn how you fought that spider creature the other night."

Ranma thought about this. She had some training, but not anything he thought was useful for her. The real question was it worth teaching her or not.

"Mokoto-chan you can go with us on our visit and I will give your application some consideration."

"Thank you Ranma-san. That is all I can ask for. "

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Usagi had just gone home after school. The last few days had been too much for her and she was due for a good cry now and ice cream later. When you took the calmness of Serenity from her she was still the same happy go lucky girl she always was. She needed some 'Usagi' time right now.

The others were nominally going out for ice cream. Ohh there would be ice cream present to be sure, but there would more than that be a download for them with each other. Ami understood that they had only seen a fraction of the roller-coaster that Usagi had been on, and convinced the others to just give her time to breath.

Usagi walked in put her books down and hugged her mother.

"Momma, I am going to go take a long bath in the furo and lay down a bit. Everything has been too much for me so I think I need a good soak".

Ikuko knew that Usagi was terribly stressed out. Chibi-Usa had just up and left to go to America yesterday, and her friend Cassy had been hurt, so had gone home until she recovered. Since Usagi had never been one who was good at dealing with stress, Ikuko was glad that Usagi was taking some time out to rest. 'That will make her feel better. At least no one died.'

Usagi spent quite a while in the Furo and then went to her room, had a good old fashion cathartic moment.

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

The trip between Juuban and Nermia is not a long one. After all they were right next to each other. And the Ono's lived within walking distance of the rail station so getting to the Ono clinic did not take the group very long at all.

Ranma knocked on the front door and a tall very beautiful woman with long brown hair opened and greeted them

"Ranma-kun how nice it is to see you." She walked over and embraced the suddenly shy young man. "And you brought friends too. Are any of them Fiancée's?"

Ranma put his hand behind his head "Ohh no nothing like that" Something about being around Kasumi could make Ranma into the same boy he was when he left. Kasumi had that effect on a lot of folks.

"I am here to observe the Tendo School, to see where it is at, and to introduce my students to the master of the Tendo branch." Ranma had taken a more serious tone with that. Since Happy left it falls to me to make sure both forms advance and the main form prospers, so I need to see if there are any gaps in this style."

Kasumi smiled happily "We'll let me go get changed. I am the current Tendo master, although we call it the Ono School now." Kasumi ushered them all in, set her tea down and said "I will get the kids Ranma, why not take your friends to the Dojo."

As Kasumi walked upstairs "So Kasumi is the master here eh? Now that is something I was not expecting." He said out loud. He led the girls to the dojo, and they sat waiting for the others to arrive. While they waited Ranma told Usa and Hotaru to come over and started showing them the most basic form of the True anything goes style. He had the girls' concentrate less on the memorization of the kata and more on the flow aspect of it. "If your body feels it wants to get itself into that point a different way than the kata seems to want to lead you, follow your body. Our style is about individuality, not rigidity." He said to the two girls who were moving through the kata. This kata was taught by showing one ridged series of movements then nine key shapes that needed to be formed one after another that the user was free to get to in whatever way they chose. It leads to Usa's form being very different in practice than Hotaru' s. It just showed how differently they thought. Ranma could tell a lot about them by watching how they shaped their forms. Usa was bursting out from within, like a flashbulb being lite in a dark room. Hotaru was lighter than Usa, but showed a slow moment like the deeper parts of the sea.

The Ono's came in and watched the tail end of the form that was being done by Hotaru. Usa was standing there waiting for Hotaru to finish before starting it again. Mokoto was thinking about the comments Ranma was making about how the movements and energy flows needed to be aligned to the artists own body and spirit.

&^%$#!#$%^&

Gasping for air, Rei made it to Usagi's house. She ran up and knocked on the door. Ikuko answered it, with a somewhat concerned look on her face. 'It seems all of them are upset about things today'.

"Ikuko- Obasan, Is Usagi here?" Asked Rei, still slightly panting.

"Yes, she has gone to bed. This have just been too much for her I am afraid. Would you like to come in and have some tea?"

"Yes Obasan"

They walk into the living room, and Ikuko brings her in some tea and cookies. In truth she had made the cookies for Usagi and Usa, but since one was too upset to eat, and the other gone, they would go to waste.

"Ikuko-san, can you tell me what has Usagi so upset?"

Ikuko thought a moment. "Well at first I thought it had something to do with you. A bit ago she really didn't want to go to the shrine or see you at all. Now I think it's because Usa has moved to be with her parents in America, and her friend Cassy had to go home because she got into an accident. Losing family who Usagi said would probably never return, along with another friend in two days probably was too much for her. So she is in her room, resting."

Reis thoughts spiraled down farther and farther. Usa must really BE dead if what Ikuko said was true. So must Cassy. So far the only reason Rei was alive at all is probably that Ranma accepted the blood debt Rei brought down on them. The life of the Neo-princess was what it took to redeem the scouts honor. Rei got up and staggered a bit. She needed away. Somewhere just away from here. From everyone for a time. She walked unsteadily to Usagi's door where the moon cats sat outside and glared at her. She went to know on the door but Luna hissed at her. Rei looked down at the cats.

"Please tell her I am sorry. I was wrong. And I am sorry. It cost too much for me to learn this, but…" Rei trailed off" Tell her she is and always will be my queen. I am going away from awhile, to learn to see if I can ever regain what was lost my honor being the least of which." Rei smiles sadly at the cats. "I will not trouble her. When I come back I will gladly face her judgment. Please tell her all of that."

Rei left the house and headed south, and just kept walking. Hear heart and soul were already lost, it was time for her body to catch up.

&^%$#!#$%^&

Hotaru finished and Ranma motioned for them to sit down with Mokoto. Kasumi walked up to Ranma with Ran-kun and Ranko walking behind her. She bowed to Ranma and spoke

"Greetings, Grandmaster. I have brought the apprentices of the Tendo branch for your observation as you requested. This is Ran-kun, my son and Heir and this is Ranko, my daughter and another disciple in the art. I hope we can show you our worth."

Ranma nodded and took the place of the Sensei at the front of the Dojo.

"Kasumi I would see you and your heir spar, to gauge your abilities and form."

The mother and son faced each other and Ranma signaled them to start. From Ranma's perspective, he could not was Kasumi better than Ran-kun but she was innately gifted for it. Ran-kun was almost all grounded and power based. But Kasumi, while also grounded was so circular that she slowly seemed to spin her sons' attacks and facing in this tighten circle. After about 3 minutes Ranma clapped his hands.

"Enough. Kasumi have you had training from the amazons?"

Kasumi looked at Ranma. "No, I have not."

"I should teach you a few of their techniques you fight almost naturally into one of their greater attacks, and I can see why you are master here. Your style of the form is excellent. With the additional training it was best for you have developed an Ono school of the art." Coming from Ranma this was high praise and everyone knew it.

"Ran-kun. You have mastered the basics of the art; however you seem to have the same flaws that your grandfather and late aunt had. Find the movements that compliment you and your body. It seems that you fight against yourself as much as your opponent." Ran-kun was internally annoyed at this but he put up with the comments from his uncle. He had seen how his uncle moved, and his mastery of the art.

"Now I would like to see Ran-kun and Ranko spar as well."

Ran-kun and Ranko squared off, and at Ranma's signal began themselves. Ran-kun still used the earth to power his attacks, and would win this contest if given time. Ranko was however using the attacks of her brother to take her farther into her jumps, mimicking the Saotome style more than ground fighting like the Tendo style. Her main flaw was lack of aggression, and an unwillingness to be hit." After only a minute or so, Ranma called the fight.

"Good both of you. Ranko, you need to learn to commit and be willing to be hit more. Kasumi I agree with them, and your placement of them in your school."

The three Ono's sat down in the dojo in front of the grand master.

"Each of you need to learn how they style will mirror your mind, and body. Ranko, you need to be trained in a different part of the style all together. The Saotome branch would suit you more. I shall have to think on this." He motioned to the watching girls. "These are my students, with no rankings as of yet. Usa, Hotaru and Mokoto" Mokoto stomach did flips as she was internally ecstatic that Ranma had called her one of his students.

"In the future we shall have the various students spar more, but I think that is all I needed.." Ranma stopped for a moment and looked at the main entrance that was part of the rear of the Dojo.

"Whoever you three are you should come in and introduce yourselves. If you seek to challenge anyone, as grandmaster I shall answer that personally." Ranma called out to apparently no one.

Two girls and a young woman walked into the dojo from outside where they had been hiding and watching. Ran-kun groaned while Ranko smiled at them. They were obviously friends of hers.

The two girls bowed to Ranma. "I am Shinamori Kuno" said one and bowed. "I am Aoshi Kuno" and joined her sister in a deep bow. The young woman also bowed to Ranma. "I am Natsume Sarugakure, Ranma-sama. My father often spoke of your kindness to him."

Ranma examined them. There seemed to be nothing in the girls of the family curse, and the Kionichi that stood with them did not seem to be abused like her father was.

"It is good to meet you all. May I ask what business you have come here for?"

Natsume answered him. "The mistress's came to see their friend Ranko, as they often do. I accompany them for their protection.

"Tonight we have family matters to discuss. If it is not too much trouble, could I ask you to return another time?" asked Ranma.

Aoshi bowed again "Of course. May I ask one question?"

"Of course"

"Are you THE Ranma?"

"Let me guess Kodachi' s kids?"

They both nodded happily.

"You seem so more, Stable than I expected. Yes I am That Ranma"

"Cool!. We will see you later then"

Ranma just looked at them in half irritation and a part laughing at them. "Ranko are they good folks are not"

Ranko said "great", while Ran-kun said "hentai" under his breath.

Ranma looked at Ran-kun. Care to add anything to this Ranma?"

"No grandmaster. Not at all"

Ranma smirked at his nephew a moment. Then addressing Kasumi he asked.

"Is your husband around? I think we should all chat a moment if that is agreeable to you. "

Kasumi nodded." Yes he is home today I will get him."

Ranma looked back at the student. My students can either spar with Ran-kun or practice forms while we go have our discussion. Ranko, Can you come with me as well. I would like to discuss something with you."

"Yes grandmaster."

And Ranma left, he noticed that it was Mokoto that was going to spar with Ran-kun.

Once inside Kasumi, Tofu, and Ranma sat in the waiting room while Ranko and Akane served them tea. Akane went back to her duties and Ranko stood to the side.

"Ranko I am of the mind to teach you the Saotome branch of the school. I would need your parents' consent and your willingness to learn to do this. Tofu, Kasumi do you have concerns on this? I would be asking her to move in with my mother so she could attend my school for easier training."

Tofu looked at Kasumi who nodded affirmably. Tofu cleared his throat.

I supposed we don't even NEED to ask Ranko, but as long as you don't do any of your fathers training with her, I think it would be fine."

"Ranko" she just nodded quickly

"Ok I will be back after school on Wed, to pick her up, which will give us time to deal with living arraignments"

After a bit they all left and headed back to the train. Ranma bought the tickets and they waited on the train stand. He was watching the girls talk about sparing the Ran-kun when he saw in front of him a boy and girl with deep rich dark purple hair. The girl pulled out a bicycle chime. Ranma grew a little apprehensive with this sight. The next thing he felt were soft breasts pressing against his back, arms wrapping around him and a husky female voice breathing over Ranma's ear

"Did you miss me Husband?"

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

"Shampoo, Get off of me!" Ranma pushed the excited amazon away from her glomp. Ranma was trying to decide if he was angry or amused by the purple haired amazon. Shampoo had apparently not changed a bit. Well other than her Japanese was not broken and bad anymore. Looking at her, she still looked fantastic wearing a red and black dress that should have been classified as a weapon. It had only been 15 years; she was just barely 30, and look like she was in her early 20's. Aged well was an understatement. Usa, Hotaru and Makoto were looking sort of green around the gills with jealousy over this latest woman to show up. And what was this about 'Wife"?

"But _*sniff*_ Husband. Didn't you miss me? _*sniff*"_ Shampoo sniffed. "You must have abandoned me and married one of the other Fiancées. *sniff* I bet you have a wife now on every continent. You just left when you got bored with me and took away my happiness" _*sniff_*. Her kids however were trying hard not to laugh. Usa and Hotaru looked at Ranma with a hint of anger. He had better not be some playboy hurting women all over the world. The entire effect was ruined in a single moment as both Ranma and Shampoo started to laugh. All of the folks present other than them looked shocked thinking different things among them. The biggest single thought was from the scouts present was STILL the 'Wife?' part. Ranma turned and hugged Shampoo.

"So how's it been, and who did you marry" looking at the two kids.

"Just you and it's been fine. They are your kids"

Ranma urked.

"But we would have had too…. No we never, I WOULD have known."

Shampoo got this evil glint in her eyes, "You mean you have forgotten all of those times we shared together? The shower…"

"Which I didn't want"

"Us together after making me wear too too small bathing suit? Remember? At the Beach?"

"Where you beat me up, and made me do that stupid Anything Goes watermelon race."

"In your room.."

"Where you would sneak in and I would run out screaming"

"Me as a cat.."

"Was Terrifying, then and now"

She giggled again.

"Well husband, some too too good news for you. The kiss of death and the kiss of marriage don't apply to you. _*sniff*_ so by Amazon law we no longer married . Since you killed Saffron Village elders think that Ranma too hard to control. The God slayer could never be bound by our laws." Shampoo sighed. Ranchek just looked at his mother like she had grown a second head.

"I am no longer married to an amazon?" Ranma smirked. "At least I don't have you trying to get married to me now at least"

"Now WHEN did I say that? After all those ARE your children over there. I can still try and get you with my old and ghoulish body". Shampoo showed a positively criminal amount of leg to everyone present. Ranbo just wanted to beat her too too forward mother until she was too too black and blue. Shampoo grinned "Ranchek, Ranbo please come and greet your father."

The two children bowed politely. The effect was kind of ruined by the amount of weapons they both seemed to be carrying

"What? You can't be serious."

"Yes Ranma I can" she smiled happily. "Nine months after your death, I had these two twins"

Very few things can really affect Ranma anymore. Finding he had kids now not quite enough, but Usa lunging forward hugging the two other kids going "FAMILY!" In Cassy's voice did it. Ranma passed out.

Shampoo looked down at Ranma in amusement "well at least some things never change. "So ladies, which of you are his finances now, and where are we all going?"

They all watched in awe as Shampoo picked Ranma up casually and they all got on the train back to Juuban

**&^%$#!#$%^&**

Ranma awakes the next morning, back in his room. He is fairly sure the last events he remembered were nothing more than some sort of weird dream. He figured that if shampoo had shown up, Kids in tow he would be on a boat to china right now.

He never counted on Shampoo getting a hotel, and starting to look for a house for her and her kids, no swearing everyone including Nodoka to secrecy about it. She figured she had at LEAST two more fainting spells with him that she could pull off, and after she had been strung around by him for those year's she deserved some payback.

Ranma got up and sparred with Usa, Hotaru and Makoto. They then all ate together, and went to the school courtyard to train again. It was at this second training that the captains of the MMA club captain walked up.

"Ranma Saotome, I am Ryu Tokagi, captain of the MMA club at this school. To defend the honor of our club, I am issuing you a formal challenge, with seconds. Do you accept?" said Ryu formally.

Ranma look at him. He carried himself as a fighter; however he seemed to be very attached to the earth, like that was where he got his strength from. In fact, he moved like Akane had all those years ago. 'MMA? I wonder if that is any relation to the Tendo anything goes?' he thought to himself.

"Ryu-san, I would be happy to spar with another fighter. When would you like to do this, and what do you mean 'with seconds'?" replied Ranma.

"We use a seconding system. You and one of your students versus one of my students and myself. The fights can be either for points, submission or knockout. As the challenged party you get to choose." Replied Ryu.

Ranma considered the points system but he remembered from long ago and a certain Kendoist to not engage in point system fights that he did not know how the points were scored.

"Since I am unfamiliar with your point system, I guess knockout then." Ranma smirked. "I will try not to hurt you too much when we do have this. Is after school today ok?"

"That will be fine, Ranma-san. We will have it in the fighting ring we use."

Ryu takes his leave to head back to get ready for class.

"Hmmm so now I have to choose a second huh. Well Makoto, you seem to have the most experience with hand to hand than anyone else in the class. So I guess you will be my second. "

Makoto nodded.

Class was from Ranma's perspective kind of boring. The strange homeroom teacher that sort of creeped him out had weird tuffs of her hair sticking up just like Cat ears. She started going down the list, and he heard some names he recognized. Usagi was here, along with several of her friends. But it was when the teacher called out for Kazuki Kounji that he perked up. She called for him twice and then marked him absent. The next name on the list was Taishi Kounji, who also was not present. Ranma did not like coincidences, and here was a huge one. First Shampoo showing up with two kids she said was his, now two Kuonji's that happen to be absent today. Ranma got the familiar feeling of someone walking over his grave.

During lunch Ranma was grabbed and pulled to a tree by Usagi.

"Ranma we have to eat together. We are all friends." Ranma sighed and started to watch the show. Usagi and another girl started arguing about boys so Ranma tuned them out. After finishing his meal he jumped up into the tree, and then jumped up to the top of the thin chain-link fencing that was around the school. Makoto and Usa both watched him intently, as he started doing some of the medium grade katas while balancing on the fence. After a few moments of this though everyone in the yard started watching him as he slowly sped up faster and faster. Soon he was moving at almost blinding speed, flowing from kata to kata all the while balanced on the fence. Ryu and some of his other club members were watching the display and started to get a little nervous about this challenge this afternoon. Privately Ryu admitted to himself that Ranma was in a different league than he but he needed to follow through on the challenge.

Later, after school had let out for the day, Both he Anything goes club, and the Juuban High MMA clubs met at the Gym, where Ranma got his first look at the 8 sided cage they would be fighting in.

"Hmmm, I should clarify a few things before we do this. Makoto you ever been in one of these type of fights before?"

Makoto shook her head negatively.

"Yo, Ryu got a question about the format"

"Yes Ranma-san?"

"I figure I get DQed if I leave the ring, but is the top of the cage off limits?" asked Ranma.

Ryu sighed. He should have known that after the display at lunch he would have thought to use the top of the octagon as a valid fighting stand.

"No, that is a valid space to fight from. But if your foot touches the floor you are disqualified."

"Ok I can live with that."

First the seconds started their fight. Makoto was a fairly straight forward with her attacks. The guy from the MMA club kept trying to lock her up, but she just powered through his attempts. Even getting an arm lock on her just got her to elbow him in the face through the lock until he let it go. It was a sort of grueling fight, but did show that Makoto could soak up more damage than he could, and eventually he submitted after a particularly vicious sidekick followed by two knees strikes to his head. As he was unable to bow, the Ryu bowed on his behalf and Mokoto was declared the winner of the bout.

It was about this time that almost everyone who was left on campus, including the teachers showed up to watch the second bout.

While Hotaru was quietly healing Makoto of her injury's Ranma stretched a bit, and then bowed to Ryu. Ranma took a very unconcerned stance, just watching Ryu. The match started with Ryu pulling the exact same strike pattern as a beginning Tendo student. Ranma kept his hands in his pockets, and danced around his opponent, trying to see if there were any innovation's or style differences.

"Your style looks exactly like the Tendo anything goes style of fighting. Did you train under any of them?" while dodging another sloppy kick.

"I trained _*gasp*_ under Kasumi Ono. I think the Tendo School disbanded." Ryu tried to wrap up Ranma into a bear hug, and Ranma again moved to the side letting him run face first into the cage.

"Well I guess that explains all of the flaws in your form." Ranma did a complete 360 around Ryu's kick. "The Tendo/Ono schools concentrate too much on ground fighting."

"_*gasp* _How would you know *_huff*"_ Ryu was getting tired.

"Ohh that is because I am grandmaster of the main Anything Goes branch. So technically you study in my school." Ranma replied. "You're looking a little bit winded Ryu. I should end this." Ranma said amused. Ranma moved forward, with his hands still in his pockets. Dodging the flurry of blows the Ryu was dishing out, he jumped into the air and snap kicked a pressure point on the other boy. He was out like a light.

Folks started murmuring in the back ground. "He never took his hands out of his pockets.

Ranma just smirked and leapt over the cage and landed next to his students.

"ok that is all for the day. Usa Dear sister we need to go and work on some other items today." He smirked at Usa for some reason Usa blushed mildly.

'His eyes. Just Wow'

She could not hear a voice but she could feel a sort of acknowledgment from her constant companion, Cassy. Sometimes Cassy was close to being solid in her mind and other times she was like she is now. A simple ghostly form that sent her feelings.

"Yes Ranma" was her actual reply.


	13. Chapter 02X Night falls on the Kingdom

_Rewrite finished and up to date. Now back to adding to story ;) About doubled in total content and backstory._

_This one is short but dreams often are_

**Night Falls on the Kingdom.**

Ami sat reading a history book just before sleep overtook her.

&^%$#!#$%^&

The wars had been going on for centuries now, and it was a brutal thing. It had started with a major event. Queen Serenity the fifth was dead, on the floor of the palace, with her guardian Pluto by her side. The Exiled Serenity the sixth had fled along with her guardian Lady Saturn, and they took with them the Ginzuishou. They also took Lady Mercury's Stealth ship and one of the decorative statues from the palace grounds. Of course All of the Senshi knew what that statue was, and who was trapped in it. The pair had taken their husband away with them, after they assassinated the Queen, and ending the line of House Serenity.

Each of the Senshi went looking for them but they were never found. So after time without any direct leadership from the Earth, they recolonized their respective planets, and created themselves new kingdoms. Senshi were very long lived, but age and small slights grew into distrust for most of the Senshi.

Venus and Mars were both very militant planets. War was a way of life for those under Mars, and Venus had such an "excess population" problem that they had started to colonize some of the larger asteroids, just for space. What started the fighting however was when Lady Venus decided to colonize earth's moon, again to take up the slack.

During this time the earth itself was run by a group of nobles, and were very undeveloped technologically in comparison to most of the other planets. While none could match Mercury for its innovations, Earth was perhaps the most barbaric of places. While they tried to raise a fuss about Venus starting to land colonizers on the moon, it was Mars that took this as a threat. A Martian fleet blockade was formed, and both planets sent fleets to stare each other down.

In the end it was Venus that fired first. And the slug fest began.

For 500 years the war dragged on. Mars demanded Jupiter to help her, and when they did not get a favorable reply they annihilated the capitol city, sending all of the inhabitants into the depths of the planetary storms, crushing it completely. Jupiter chose a new avatar, and the new Lady Jupiter waged a war against Mars. The trio all kept trying to get Mercury's support, and she denied them all. Instead she kept building herself a fleet, to prepare for her part in the war that she knew was coming.

The outer planets had never been colonized, so when a large force came from the direction of Neptune bearing the markings of Venus, and attacked the Jovian fleet, it was a free for all. Venus had three planets at this point, and by her reasoning meant she held the most power. She declared herself the New Queen of the system.

At that each of the others announced they were the legitimate Queen as well, with only Mercury sitting it out. Jupiter as a race was the first to fall. Her cities were just to vulnerable. Mercury was dragged in when a Martian fleet mistook one of her ambassadorial fleets for a Venus privateer group and destroyed them.

Another hundred years passed. The fighting around the earth and moon had ravaged the planet and destroyed the moon entirely. In the sky above the earth, if you could see past the searing winds of radioactivity, you would see the moon split into three parts, with one large chunk missing. That chunk had hit the continent of Asia, and by itself would have been just by itself call bed a world killing event, had Mars had not already enthropy bombed it.

In many places the fighting went down to hand to hand. When Lady Jupiter was finally brought down it was by the guard of Mars. She killed most of them, but could not kill them all, her life blood drained on the throne room floor of Mars, seeking revenge for the destruction of her last planetary city.

More fighting. Generation after generation was born and bred to fight. Mercury lost her left eye in a hand to hand fight with Mars, just as she took the head of Mars, and started destroying everyone on mars to ensure no new Senshi would be formed. Genocide she called it. Venus had most of the system in terms of planets, but Mercury had the power to harness the energy of Sol directly. Using a Solar Channeler and set of lenses, she started being able to wipe the face clean of everything on each planet she took aim at. In the end, hardened, one eyed Queen Mercury's forces surrounded the planet Venus and began its attack.

"Give up Usurper" said Mercury in a transmission to Venus. The elderly blond just looked up at Mercury with contempt. "Destroy me if you want, or not I don't care. We will fight you until the last of House Venus lays dead or your corpse is stuffed over my mantle."

Mercury ordered her ships to begin their approach. As the fighting began in earnest and The armies of Mercury landed on Venus, beginning to try and fight into the capitol city one of the out scouts of Lady Mercury send a sudden distress call for the queen.

"Your highness, a large fleet has just entered the system." Came the transmission "they are of a new design, and don't have any markings we have seen before."

Mercury scowled. "Show me"

The scout sent a transmission. It was a little fuzzy at the edges, but the symbol was plainly visible for a moment, then the scout's transmission cut off.

The ships were silver and blue colored. They all bore the symbol of a Silver moon, with the sigil of Saturn over the top.

"That's where that bitch went" Mercury said to herself. "just another tramp to destroy. She won't be able to stand against my fleets any more than anyone else could." She thought to herself.

Another transmission from the planet carried news to her that Venus had been captured, and was being brought up to Mercury's ship. Mercury ordered her fleet in the Silver empires direction.

A few hours later the advanced fleet for mercury encountered this rolling wave of energy, just as it ripped through the planet of Uranus. One by one each of her fleet ships alerted her to this growing wave of force as it clawed its way across the system, heading for the sun

When Mercury watched on her screen as Venus broke apart, from the energy wave she knew it was all over. Saturn must have started the attack with the silence.

And it worked.

&^%$#!#$%^&

Ami awoke in a sweat. She was able to remember much of this dream. She wrte down everything she saw in her dream, and then tried to process the information in her dream. It terrified her.

She did not get back to sleep that night. She knew it was a nightmare, only a dream but to have watched everything. She was glad that it was just a dream.

It was just a dream.

A dream

Dream


	14. Chapter 10 spreading starts

_I don't own anything. This is not for any profit. edit 6/18 _

**Chapter 10 Spreading starts.**

Grandfather Hino looked at Nodoka with a vast amount of disappointment. There were some understandable parts of her reactions on this, but she was stepping far beyond what he knew of her all of these years.

"No-chan, what's happened to you? This was way beyond what I would have expected from you." Grandfather Hino admonished her.

Nodoka looked at him with some guilt. She had been so angry, at everything inside of her for so long. She worked to try and atone for her own sins, but then there was her anger. No one out of the family really knew why she had such deep anger with herself. To have someone challenge that, push her or make her feel like it was happening again…. She went off without thinking things through. Nodoka needed to come clean to the priest to see if maybe he could help with the real problems.

"Hino-san, I have a lot to atone for. Ranma's return and the events surrounding that caused me to see how little peace I had gotten in regards to this since he left. If I am honest, I am as angry with myself as I was with Rei, over the apparent loss of a granddaughter I never even got to meet."

Nodoka hung her head "I watched a girl offer to kill herself, and start to follow through with it, because she felt she was partially responsible for Cassy's death. Ranma talked about a lot of things I did not understand, at all, and he also felt that Rei was responsible. He seemed to blame her more for running away than even try to make an apology. For years I thought all I wanted was grandkids. It took Ranma's "death" to show me how wrong that was. I wanted a family again. But he returns, I find I have my son back, and the in only a couple of hours after I knew that he is back, I am preparing a girl for seppuku, in response to a death of someone I would have desperately wanted to meet. It's just too much to deal with all at once."

Grandfather Hino just nods. He can tell she is not done. "Why don't you tell me all of it from the beginning, and I can see if I can offer you some advice."

Nodoka gives a forced, painful laugh. "From the beginning? Ok, here it the catalogue of my sins." Nodoka, for the first time to anyone, opens herself up and lets all of walls and masks fall, to show her friend just what kind of monster as a mother she had been. She starts with being a 16 year old seduced by an older man, filling her head with stories of Samurai, and honor, and leading to the fear in her own sons eyes 17 years later.

At the end of this, it was all the priest could do was hold the sobbing woman, and look again at the cloth of the goddess. She had been found worthy, but heaven. Now Nodoka needed to learn how to handle this.

***&^%$#!#$%^&***

Ranma and Usa walked down through the store front near the arcade. Ranma was looking for two things that would both be on his way home. He found one of them. This ice-cream shop. As it turns out it's the same ice cream shop he went to and met Usa for the first time. HE looks at Usa.

"You're the one who bought me the ice-cream the first day huh? Your Ki patterns look a little different"

Usa thinks about this. "Yes I bought you three chocolate ice-cream cones that evening. In part because I wanted an excuse to find out who you were."

Ranma knew there was more to the story than that but at this instant his stomach was winning over his curiosity. "Well we will talk about that later. Come on Usa, I owe you a cone". Ranma smiled at her.

Down the road right at a he heard the first of many of these sounds that he would come to dread over the next few days. He had turned towards the door, and heard a "ching-ching" of a bicycle bell. He snapped his head up, and saw two figures down a couple of blocks away, looking in his direction. He blinked, and when he opened his eyes again, the figures were gone. He shivered

"what's wrong Ranma?" asked Usa.

Ranma grumbled to her "nothing, just nothing"

They went inside, and sat down at a booth. After looking over the menu, Ranma took out some money that his mother had given him and bought them both Turtle Sundays. He felt that this more than made up for the three plain cones she had fronted for.

"So Usa. You said you knew about the future right?" Ranma had several questions, but he not really had the time to ask any of them. "Why come back and look for me? And "His face grew a little darker, "Why hurt Cassy".

"Ranma-san, have you ever heard the phrase 'The road to hell is paved in good intention's. The first time you fought the spiders was what is called a time focus. Every possible future that I could see had one thing in common. You would be there, to fight that spider. It's from there that things could go downhill, culminating in the destruction of this part of the universe when some greater being comes through to consume this universe entirely. I know it sounds crazy but that is how it happens." Usa looked uncomfortable There were parts of this she would not tell him. Ranma nodded because he knew what she was talking about coming through.

Ranma glowered at her "That still does not explain why you caused Cassy to be hurt.."

"If Moon saved Cassy, something that was also in every time line before I forced the change, then you would be beholden to the scouts. To Usagi. And something happens because of that where Cassy is put into the worst kind of death imaginable. I was wrong. I wanted to take a chance with her life, to keep her from being tortured for eternity.

"What kind of torture?" Ranma asked quietly.

"Undeath, locked and magically bound to a crystal, never able to move but can see and feel everything. Being a crystal, vibrations, movement even sound are supposed to be agony. One that can never end"

Ranma thought about this. "I do not approve of your methods, but Cassy agreed to forgive you, so We find ourselves where I must as well."

Usa bows her head again in shame for what she has done.

"Ranma's voice softened a bit." I CAN tell she likes you, a lot. I can still feel her, and she is happy with you, who you are inside. So don't give up. We will stop the Thirst it's what we do."

Usa nodded to her Sensei.

"Hunting is more than fighting. Its also drawing strength from our code. So we will…"

*splash as a waitress stumbled and spilled water on Ranma's lap. Ranma-chan sighed. After I get cleaned up, we will go over the code in-depth."

Isa grabbed napkins and tried to help Ranma clean herself up. She knew that even away from school, she would have to learn a lot. She wondered if it was more rote or rhetoric.

***^%$##!#$%^&***

Rei on the other hand continues walking around Juuban. Her mood swings back from guilt and shame all the way to anger. She KNEW what she was shameful over. She has been horrible the last month or so. Hurtful to Usagi, and she had been using Chiba. She knew she could control him, if she chooses to, and that was a heady feeling to her.

Usagi at the meeting though, had frightened her. Usagi became Serenity, and Serenity had Power, where Usagi did not. Serenity was who Usagi was becoming. While Rei in the now could pull this crap on Usagi, playing these games with the mind that Serenity possessed was playing with a fire Rei did not want to look at.

This was however the way things had been between them all for years. Why was everything blowing up now? Why would the spirit of the fire abandon her as well? All she did was play around with Chiba. That had happened before. It's not possible that the great fire would turn on her for lashing anything demonic,

No there was something different around now. Something that was blocking her. Inside Rei could still not face that she was at fault for anything, really. It had to be someone else's fault. She did what was her job, pushing demons away, even if they acted nice now, they were still demons.

'The Boy'. She thought to herself "Ranma must have something to do with this. Everything was fine before he showed up.'

Rei continued to walk around the edges of Juuban, lost in her thoughts.

***^%$#!#$%^&***

Only a bloc form the point of entry point of the Type one scout, there was a children's playground. Off to a corner was an anthill with a circular opening in the front of the "tower" rather than the top. The ants that came and went soft of gave off this desire not to be looked at. Later in the evening the hole was dug wide opened, and the "ants" carried into the hole a small bird that was alive, but not conscious. They dragged it underground and then filled the whole back behind them to appear to be a normal hole.

***&^%$#!#$%^&***

Usagi and Minako were hungry. A truer statement was Usagi was always hungry and Minako had not eaten lunch. Ami was too busy going over the session notes to even notice food. Minako however wanted something to actually eat. Lunch had been watching Ranma, and that filled a whole different kind of hunger (or more to the point made her think of boy rather than food). The three of them wandered around on their own, looking for a place to eat.

Usagi noticed a fairly new shop that she had not been too yet. The main thing she noticed was today was a 2 for one special day, so her stomach as well as Minako's was supernaturally lead in that direction.

The shop was fairly new to the area, opening about 6 months ago. It was trying to position itself soft of equidistant between 3 schools in the area, one of them the middle and two high schools. It was Eimi's Okonomiyaki shop, and was in the habit right now of doing specials to garner a steady following. Today's special was a get two for the price of one "RanChans" special. It was the most loaded and expensive meal in the shop of course, but two for one meant that Usagi could eat many more of them than she could normally afford. As she walked in, Eimi the chef waved. She would soon would learn that Usagi had a stomach that could rival the stuff of her family's odder legends.

They got their food and they all sat in a booth.

Usagi was too busy stuffing her face to really start talking yet, but Minako looked at Ami. "So you get to spend an hour a days with him, almost alone. What's it like?"

Ami looked up from her notes "Well, Ran-kun has some intelligence that much is clear. It's just getting him to apply it to everyday details that seem to be the challenge. I think once I get the math into him, his angular geometry will be outstanding. Same with many of the other hard sciences, thermal interactions for example. But getting him past the basic math will be the real trick. He has a good grasp of history good at English and Russian. His Kanji is non-existent more or less. And of all things really cook homemaking skills, cooking sewing etc." Ami looked back at her notes.

"Usa on the other hand, well, she is just behind me in most of the science and math. Almost no grasp of history, she speaks more languages than I do, though a few of them are for places that do not yet exist" Ami dropped her voice to a whisper. "She showed me two functions of the mercury computer I was completely unaware of. Did either of you know that the pen could become self-mobile or act as a robotic sensor?"

Usagi was still eating though a little annoyed her daughter was so much better at school than she was. All of that annoyance however paled in the light of the food before her.

Ami finally pulled herself away from the notes long enough to look at the menu. She decided on a Takoyaki snack rather than a full Okonomiyaki. While scanning it over, she said

"Hey any of you notice the 'one Free Okonomiyaki to anyone who can prove they are either a Ranma, or a Saotome. Special award for anyone who has both names. Care of the main office. Kounji industries."' Notice on the bottom of the back of the menu?" asked Ami

The other two looked at it. "Wuhmmmmr muhhhf hey murphhial myiii iuhm" responded Usagi.

The sad this was they had both been around her enough to know what she was asking.

***&^%$#!#$%^&***

The three girls finally went their separate ways. Usagi was still very worn out and the effort of trying to be "normal" was taxing on her. Ami had to go study, leaving Minako to wander around a bit. She eventually decided to go to the arcade, and see if she could break her score of the Sailor V game. Inside the usual suspects were there the kinds playing and she waited her turn for one of the machines kind of moping to herself. Everything of late had been so confusing. Why had she turned on Usagi. It seemed fun at the time, but now… not so much. Minako was suffering from as deep a depression as Usagi was, she just wasn't even attempting to deal with it right.

After losing every game she played (for the Legendary Sailor V player, this was odd.

Broke, she started to head home. Her parents would be around later, so she entered the empty house.

"Even Artimese is gone. HE annoys me but today I wish he was back."

Minako moped.

***&^%$#!#$%^&***

Nabiki had found at least one thing that was keeping her from falling back into that depression. The folks around her were all seriously alive. They were all Odd yes, not NEAR as chaotic as when she was around Ranma when she was younger and several of them, like this "Hotaru" were chipper beyond belief sometimes. Tween that and apparently several of them did not have to actually "clear" things with parents before moving around seemed to be odd to her. Now granted she had seen this same little girl transform into some sort of dark goddess of warfare, may have a little to do with this. So far while she was still very depressed, especially at night, Nabiki seemed to sometimes feel that she had exited a nightmare into a dream of magic, with gods and goddess's moving through her world, in small ways.

"Nabiki-san, Thank you very much for offering to help me bring things over. With none of my "guardians" around right now, I would feel far safer being nearer to Usa everyone else." Hotaru smiled up at Nabiki in her Perky Goth kind of way.

"No problem Hotaru-chan. I won't even charge you "Nabiki smiled back at her. Helping folks was something she was starting to find that on some level she enjoyed, thanks to the last few days. She had not done anything for years now. Her memories of prison were not something she even wanted to think about dealing with yet. Of course her family accepted her, but she had failed them, and she just could not get it in her head really that they loved her. How could they. With Ranma's friends though. Here were folks who had nothing to gain, to who were being nice to her, smiling at her. Even asking her for help. She really should start talking to Kasumi again. Kasumi seemed to know everything. Maybe she could talk Kasumi into going on a vacation, just the two of them as sisters, for a week. Nabiki started to look sad and sighed.

Hotaru had learned about Nabiki, and felt what they were a lot alike. Both in desperate need of others, and at different times not able to have others around. Hotaru took Nabiki's hand, saying "it's always best to hold hands crossing the street." She grinned at Nabiki, pulling Nabiki out of her thoughts with the touch. They finally made it to Setsuna's home.

Inside Hotaru looked around, no one was around of course, so Nabiki and Hotaru packed up some items, included clothes and a purple teddy bear, then left and relocked the place up. Nabiki resolved that she would call her older sister tonight, to see if they could try and catch up. Maybe she would go with Ranma tomorrow, when he went to get Ranko. It may be getting a bit crowded with Ranma's "Harem" in the Saotome house though for the life of Nabiki she could not see him taking any of them like that. Well, maybe that Usa girl, but by his own honor she was off limits.

About fifteen minuet's after the two left, a taxi arrived carrying Haruka and Michiru, and their luggage. Neither had a happy look on their faces.

***&^%$#!#$%^&***

Haruka and Michiru look all over the house. It looked like no one had been there in days. Setsuna was gone (while normally would not worry them too much but with the other events and that they were officially on vacation she was supposed to be there for Hotaru) really upset them. Also Hotaru looked like she had taken most of her favorite things and gone somewhere.

This REALLY disturbed them.

Haruka decided to call Usagi's mother first

"Hi, this is Ruka. Is Hotaru around by any chance?"

"No I have not seen her here in a while, I think since before Usa-ko moved back to the USA"

Hotaru blinked. 'Moved back'

"Usagi is outright now, she has been upset the last couple of days, saying that Usa-ko probably would not be able to come back anymore. When she gets back I will ask her if she has seen Hotaru"

"Uhhh ok Thanks you Tsukino-san"

Haruka growled about this. Setsuna could have Hotaru of course. But that was not really likely. She tried calling Mokoto's cell phone, but got no answer.

Michiru decided that if no one would answer their phone maybe she could use the mirror and see what she saw then. After studying it for some time she did see an image of Hotaru, and a couple of kindly looking older women. No idea where she was yet, but they could look for her at least, and she did not appear to be in any danger at the moment. Seeing that she had her teddy bear with her, meant that she at least felt like she was going somewhere safe.

"now we just need to find her, And we can go after this Ranma guy all together."

***&^%$#!#$%^&***

Later that afternoon, while Ami noticed an anti-energy reading coming from near the initial entry point of the first Spider type that they had fought. She instantly called out a general frequency alert to the rest of the scouts. Surprisingly, she also saw that Uranus and Neptune responded as well. Everyone teleported to the area to engage the next spider.

This time there were two of them. Jupiter rather than throwing lightening at it, had picked up a street sign and was trying to bash the first spider. The other one who was actively fighting these two was Hotaru, who seemed to be using her glaive as a beat stick on it. While Jupiter did not seem to work well, the silence glaive seemed to be having a similar effect to the blades Ranma used. Uranus and Neptune arrived, and saw that most of the scouts were not actually doing anything, other than Jupiter and Saturn. Uranus tried a world shaking on the spider Saturn was fighting, and unfortunately, the spider reformed back to its original power.

"Stop Uranus, elemental attacks just feed those things" yelled Moon.

"Then how to you propose to fight it?" snapped Uranus. Neptune had apparently decided to ignore Moons command and blasted the other one with watch, only to watch it grow bigger than it.

Uranus growled a bit, as she heard a male voice cut it.

"You fight them hand to hand with magical blades, and speed. Jupiter put the stop sign down, we need to get you something enchanted" said a voice of a boy all in black. Uranus could also see a younger version of what she sword was the Dark Lady. This one however instead of her black dress worse a black jumpsuit with silver bracers. Actually the Boy and Usa were both dressed in the same fashion.

The boy pulled out a pair of daggers, and went after the one that Saturn was now fighting. "Good work Saturn, keep cutting it and it will grow smaller. I knew you had it in you"

"Thank you Ranma Sensei, she replied as she ducked under one leg and sliced the main body at the same time.

The scouts lacked cohesive thought. They knew instinctively that they did not have time for spreading webs, instead fighting the hunter who was not a hunter and the avatar. The one who stood against the Avatar lasted seconds. The one with the girl with the glaive lasted another moment or two.

"Good job. And good instinct Jupiter. We just need to get something for you to use more. Same with you Usa, and any of the rest of you who wish to actually fight these creatures."

Ranma and Usa turned to leave, Saturn jumping up to join them

"Who are you? And Saturn where do you think you are going?" Barked Uranus.

"I am leaving to take them home for a debriefing of the fight, and I am their sensei, Ranma Saotome, avatar of the hunter of those creatures" Smirked the boy at Uranus

'Ranma Saotome?' thought both Uranus and Neptune said to themselves.

***&^%$#!#$%^&***

Two more of the tiny 4 armed creatures went in opposite directions right after the scout's arrivals. One in an abandoned house and the other in a drainage dip next to a river, started building their underground areas. The first group was white in color these are orange and black in colors.

The white one has an image of a spider carved on the outside of the tower, and has grown more.

_Authors notes._

_First new chapter in a while. After the rewrite starting up again is tough._

_This is STILL an AU, and I am trying to keep things in a logical "cause/effect" relationship with each character._

_Most of the scouts will get dreams, portents as it were from Kosh. He does not like the future any more than Ranma would._

_Ohh and Citan : I hope this is updating more to a level that you like over my past stories ;)_


	15. Chapter 11 Have faith in your

I own nothing, Everything is OC. I spell like a wet panda. The Czech is in the male.

Ok disclaimer provided.

**Chapter 11:**

**Have faith in your convictions as the edges start to blur.**

Cassy skirted the edges of being aware and not. She was a being of energy after all. The creatures of Ungoll all were. They were energy given physical form. It was just what she was. It was also why she was in the situation she was in now. If she had been awake when Mars lashed her, none of this could have been an issue. Her nature would have taken over and she would have consumed the flame whip. However for her to have done that she would have had to have been conscious. As it was Cassy had been starting to become unformed before Mars attacked her. The whip just aggravated the situation.

Cassy took a strong pull from Usa. She was trying to reform so she could re-examine the sending of Kosh she had. For a time there it was close. Even in the crystal she had almost drifted away even though initially she had been with Daddy. His rage however she could feel. Anger and sorrow and worry. She needed to avoid taking those emotions into her or she could become consumed by her nature. So instead she had to take more energy to block herself off from him. It was better for her to die a true death than to become lost in her demonic impulses.

Usa on the other hand was gentle, though energetic. Her energy level was not too different from her fathers, at least in power. Its flavor was vastly different. Far more magic in Usa's being than in Ranma's. Usa was not this being of focus and internal power, she was more of a channel for the power of life around her, and Cassy loved the difference in feel of the two energies.

Then there was Usa herself. She knew that Usa figured into her daddies future, significantly. She felt her father had gone a bit far in making Usa "Replace" Cassy. Taking her magic from her, and not letting her defend herself from anyone, other than the minions, was taking ti a little too far. Cassy could feel from Usa's mind s feelings for Ranma. At first Cassy thought they were just like hers, but the more she examined Usa's feeling there was a different cast to them. They were more aggressive than Cassy feelings. The desire for touch for example was similar in strength, but the kind of touches these feelings held, was very different from her own. It was almost like some sort of hunger, but it was a hunger that did not have evil in it. It was strange to Cassy, and something she would have to take more time exploring later. The dream from Kosh though needed a closer examination

She had received a sending from Kosh. She could feel it was more than a dream and that it was a warning. Using the life force she took from Usa she formed her thoughts stronger to see if it was anything that the others would need to know.

Two figures standing over a pool. The both possessed the feel of beings of ancient power. Even older than she felt from Saiel and Kosh. The two were watching events as they unfolded and appeared to be playing some sort of game between the two of them. The details of the moves were not really important but that they were moving everyone like pieces on a chess board was something to be concerned about. They appeared to fighting over things that come after the events that are currently going on. As Cassy was a spirit herself she could make out more details about the players than anyone else who saw that dream.

The dark one not only did not move, but created this field of Unmoving around it. It seemed to perpetually be still. And around it formed more stillness. Its stillness seem to passively confront the lighter being.

The lighter being was pulsing with the desire to push it self-outward. Where the Darker one was totally unmoving, this one seemed to have movement and changes all around it. At its center appeared to be a woman, ageless, who examines the pool, as much as her counterpart did. Many images flashed around her, and she seemed change clothes, in a constant unending stream. The only thing that was constant was this afterimage of spectacles that sat on her nose. Cassy could look at her and knew that this woman was called the architect, and that she represented some basic aspect of the universe.

Cassy's hold on energy took another hit, and she needed to conserve more energy. She went back to dreaming.

*&^%$# ! #$%

In the space outside of the universe stood the two figures examining the pool. This pool was the true time gate. Anywhere and anytime this pool could take someone. The two figures examined these gates, moving things here and there, trying to bring about their own end into existence.

The dark shadow had many names in the past, a single one in the old universe. It sought perfection. An unending and unchanging moment of perfection, that could not end. So we shall call this one Stasis, as more than anything else it sought stasis. Crystal Tokyo was its idea city. Unchanging. Stasis followed the other into this universe after the other created it,.

The other figure She was the builder of this universe and wanted Change more than anything else. Nothing grew without change. No new ideas, thoughts feelings. Could exist without change. So we shall call her change, though he had another name in the last universe.

The two players had reached a dangerous part of their game. Stasis felt it could exist without change, but change knew that both were needed for the universe to survive. Unbridled change was what brought the end of the last universe. And unchecked stasis would mean it was dead already.

There was a junction they had reached however, that humans could find themselves with the power to destroy all of existence. Not just the current one, but all of this universe all the way back to its creation.

So Change played her game to minimize this chance. Stasis paid that end no mind, and continued in its push for locking everything down in spite of that being part of the condition of the end of everything. Altering its goal was not in its nature.

&^%$# ! #$%^&

"Ranma?" Uranus looked at the pig tailed young man with open hostility. "You're the one. You're the one.." no announcement, or build up happens, but she powers up a world shaking, "Who she warned us about before she was ripped apart. You Die Now!" The ball of energy tears its way across the asphalt heading towards Ranma. Ranma just looks at it, and does something that none of the Youma have ever done. Just dodges the attack.

"Nice little power there, but I know little black pigs that move faster than that. You taking tranquilizers or something" Ranma looked at her with this smirk.

"Punk, I am not going to let you destroy our future" she launched her attack again, while trying to jump at him with her sword.

"Destroy the future? Look cheerleader tomboy, how do you destroy something that has not even happened yet" Ranma stuck his hands in his pockets, and continued to just dodge. While she was faster than most folks he had dealt with in his life, she was nowhere NEAR the top. He still thought Youro-chan was probably the fastest person he ever sparred with.

Uranus charged him swinging her sword at his as he dodged, knocking her off balance as he dodged.

*yawn*

*GROWL*

She jumps up and continues the assault.

Slice

"you have a point to this?"

*stab*

"Middle aged house wives would do better than you at Kendo" Ranma Smirked again.

Uranus screams and persists in her attack.

"Hey cool, you got to the right Zip code with that one."

Uranus starts to turn purple with rage

The rest of the scouts other than Neptune are all more or less in shock. Saturn starts to move in the direction of the fight. Moon is significantly closer though and tries to jump in between them. Uranus of course does not bother to change her attacks simply because the princess decides to get involved. She spins a particularly rapid combo of left and right spins that was to be followed by a center cut, when Ranma reached out and stopped the blade with his finger, just before it would have hit Moon.

"Ok, I have been being nice, but if you hurt a friend of mine, I will make you my personal wing chung dummy" Ranma said as his eyes grew a little hard.

"Stop" Moon tried to yell. However it didn't come out with any real force due to fear of Uranus's blade coming so close to hitting her. Moon sank to her knees. Uranus paid no attention to this, and took another swing at Ranma. As a follow through Neptune used her mirror to make a water beam which hit Ranma square where he was dodging the blade. It's not like Ranma ever could doge water anyway.

A sputtering female redhead struck the wall after flying through the air of the water beam.

"ok, What IS your deal?" said a Very wet Ranma-chan. "I don't know you, you show up and attack me and almost kill this cheerleader here" Ranma pointed at Moon.

Uranus looked at Moon. "Princess, for the sake of everything we have fought for you must help us purify him." Uranus looked directly at Moon, ignoring Ranma.

Moon blinked. She knew Uranus had a tendency to go off halfcocked. In fact she could almost never think of a time that Uranus found out everything before attacking. For Uranus to come so close to hitting Moon though without even an apology was a little different.

Ranma just looked at her. "Purify? What is she talking about Moon?"

Uranus ignored Ranma talking. "He has enslaved you and the others. His sorcery will cause the end of our city"

Ranma blinked at her "Great, I wondered where the Kuno Madness had gone. Apparently Magic girls tomboys now have it"

Moon looks Ranma. "It's a power of the Crystal. It takes and banishes demonic energies from a being. Generally it's harmless unless you're a monster"

Ranma got a very dark look on his face "Or a person cursed to change sexes in water perhaps? Have you ever tested that to see if well I may DIE from it?" Ranma looks disgusted at this whole thing "So your saying that just because someone may have energies that you may consider 'Demonic' you purify them away? Like Cassy for example"

Moon grew sort of pale at this however Uranus continued to ignore Ranma "Moon we HAVE to get rid of him. He will destroy crystal Tokyo."

Uranus pulled her sword back and took a swing with the flat at Moon to get her attention. She figured that Moon was enslaved to a spell and maybe the sword would break the control. The Space sword however Clanged loudly off of The Saturn Glaive, as Saturn looked coldly at Uranus and said "No." Saturn had been very unhappy to see her "father" attack Ranma for no reason, after it was obvious to ANYONE that he was instrumental in fighting the spiders. Saturn knew about how her dreams were, and knew that there were many possibilities to come for good and bad in the future to come. Crystal Tokyo in its current configuration needed to be stopped.

"Poppa, I will not let you destroy him. He is helping us, against a monster that we can't fight as a group right now. You attacking him may end our entire system. These things almost killed the entire team a few days ago. Everyone. Now you want to kill him? Or remove him. No."

Saturn would not budge in her expression. Uranus finally noticed that her little girl was wearing a VASTLY different uniform than normal. One with real armor. Uranus also saw something that confused her greatly. Anger she would have understood. Guilt for defining her she would have understood as well. Uranus could not get why she was seeing pity in Saturn's eyes though.

The rest of the scouts present, Mercury, Jupiter and Venus formed up behind Saturn.

"If its one thing I learned in England was never look a wild horse in the house" stated Venus calmly. No one could even begin to make sense of that so they just let it slide.

"Uranus, you are out of line" Said Usa, who look FAR too much like the Dark Lady for Neptune and Uranus's comfort.

The two scouts looked at each other and a silent nod passed between them. "We will be back, and we will take care of HIM." Stated Uranus as they teleported off. They both appeared back in their house, and started up to Pluto's room to see if she had made it back yet. This whole situation sucked.

Back with the other scouts Ranma just shook his head

"What did I do to them?"

Usa looked at her now female sensei. "When did that ever matter for you?"

Ranma just glared a bit at Usa, while deep in his mind he could almost hear an imagined laugh from Cassy.

Almost anyway.

&^%$# ! #$%%^

Foliage brushed her face as she turned the corner of the cave she was in. 'Some sort of underground light source hmm.' The fifteen year old girl named Sakura Hibiki, daughter of Ryoga and Mihoshi Hibiki, looked up at the blue ceiling of the cave, through all of the green palms, and saw some huge bright light in the sky.

"If I was not underground I would almost think I was looking at the sun or something" she said aloud to her stuffed lion doll that was perched on her back pack.

The lion doll just looked at her and shook his head. 'Dumbest master ever…*Sigh*. Why did this girl take me from my darling Rukia?' he thinks to himself.

Sakura just hums to herself while she travels in this weird cave that apparently has a whole ocean in it. "Wow this is a big cave!".

She continued on her quest. The quest of finding the perfect boyfriend. Her Poppa-san had told her the only way to find the best mate for a Hibiki was to look in your closet until you found them. They are always hiding somewhere in your closet. So here she was, in her closet that had four major cities, an island, many spaceships, a dragon, Asgard and a cave in it. She knew if she looked in here long enough she would definitely find who she was looking for.

Her father had found her mother in a closet after all. They said it was some weird closet with a red headed child who really wanted to strap her poppa-san to a table and perform experimental surgery on him. He just picked up his umbrella to leave and found that his umbrella was attached to her mother. Since they never found what part of the closet Mihoshi needed to come out of they just stayed together. Always. Mom said she didn't want to lose him be doing something silly, like untying them from the chains on their ankles. The last time she saw her poppa-san though he did in all seriousness tell her that if she ever found a 'Ranma Saotome' in whatever part of her closet she was in, to tie a rope to him, and see if she could get as far away from Ryoga as she could. She did not realize that in deliberately trying to get away from something she was more likely to get close to it. Ryouga figured if anyone could find a dead man and bring him back to the world of the living it would be one of his family.

Kon just sighs again. 'Damm you Hibiki-chan. Because of you I have seen hell' he shakes his plushy fist in the air.

All over the universe thirty Hibiki's sneeze at once.

^%$# ! #$%^

Haruka and Michiru both are frustrated. Setsuna is missing, but not gone. They have twice gotten text messages from her, through their communicators, saying she was at the gates and really could not leave them at present. Had they realized that she really could not leave the gates or why she could not they would have reacted better. However they decided to continue to watch the situation some. While this was a marked difference from their normal behavior, they had never had almost the whole team against them at once before either. Michiru was especially worried about what had happened to their little girl, Hotaru.

It was late on the third day of just watching out for things that they got a call from Rei. Rei wanted to meet with them to discuss something of importance.

^%$# ! #$%^

Several days pass. School continued as normal as a Juuban school day could. In all truth Ranma thought it was very calm compared to what he remembered. Various things had come up and he was not able to meet over at the Ono's to pick up his newest student, but today that would change. His students would all meet afterschool to participate in a new technique called "anything goes house packing". But before that, he needed to deal with his one on one time with his tutor Ami-chan. There was little in his life right now that made him feel smaller than the short little genius.

He walked into the homeroom for his study session.

"Hi yah Ami-chan. Another happy day studying." Ranma tried to smile at her but he was never very good at lies, something she was fond of pointing out.

"Hmmm" she chewed on the end of her pen. "I got your last set of test results, and it looks like something is keeping you from focusing properly. I think we should spend some extra time going back over basic equations that appears to be especially difficult for you."

Ranma groaned. Math. He HATED math. Really really hated math.

^%$# ! #$%^

Usa was stretching a bit after swimming. Today was swimming and she usually loved this. But she had been down since the last spider attack. Watching Haruka and Michiru begin the attacks on Ranma made her wonder if this fate was even possible to avoid. So far even with her interference, things were going wrong in almost the same ways as before. When she used her communicator to view the gates, she saw that the same events still took place, the major ones anyway. There was one new outcome though, that was starting to creep its way across the time lines. It was this well, for lack of any better term, nothing. No time, space anything. It just appears in future lines, and where ever it appears, it goes all the way back to the beginning, ending that time line in total. Something was making things worse, not better after she started meddling. This really weighed on her.

Ranm

^%$# ! #$%^

a finished his daily torcher session with ami. He popped his neck and walking outside he saw his students lightly sparing in open grounds waiting for him. He winced.

'Right, Ranko. Better get to this.' He walked up to them as they turned and bowed to him.

**The First Universe**

_Before this time there was another universe. If there were any before that, who can say. But in this universe existed a very old woman. She had existed millions of years, watching, waiting and creating things of Vast complexity. She even made a few planets, to use as testing platforms for some of her weirder projects. She was the best technical mind alive, and it was because of that she could live as long as she did. For now we will call her the architect. After long enough she just called herself 'Change'._

_But this universe was ending. Everything ends eventually, and even the universe itself must pass. She was unwilling to just End, so she created a pocket, in reality and within that poket she created a ball of mass, that she eventually blewup creating a separate universe, built on the foundation of the old one._

_She looked out her creation and smiled. As it was empy she created 4 beings, to populate her new creation, Time, Space, Order and Chaos. From them came the 8 great beings, two of which were saeil and Kami-sama. The 8 built their realms, and populated them farther, with the gods of the worlds, both good and bad._

_Finally came the mortals, and among them, came Humans. Change was very pleased by this, as she too once was human, with their faults and follies. She even remembered somewhat fondly her huge glasses, and her sisters tickle fights. A part of her past. She wondered if maybe there would be a new version of her in this universe._

_She watched and waited._

_She was however not the only being who had come from far away to this universe. At some point in time, just before the final collapse of the original another being came. She viewed the world too, and saw that a perfection could be attained here, unending, unlike in her own universe. The interloper and Change fought often about the paths that the universe was taking. In the end Change would start to call her "Stasis" as an insult. Stasis however viewed this as a compliment, Once perfection was reached, everything SHOULD stop._

Authors notes:

Sorry about the delays on posting my PC is dead Jim. So I work on this in breaks and such. I am working on a parody side story for this based on "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead". That however will be a small niche of folks who will get it. Great show, I recommend it highly.

I have the end of this story now plotted out, missing a few of the middle bits. I warn yah you will hate the one of the endings, since like any renai game, this will have good and bad ends. ;)

Been great fun doing this story so far, and I appreciate you folks for still reading it.


	16. Chapter 12 Dry your eyes

**Chapter 12 Dry your eyes and silently bear this pain with pride**_._

Saffron sat on his throne and immersed himself in thought. He was not yet fully regrown, he was actually nowhere near it. However he was feeling the stress of knowing where one of the two keys were, and not being sure where the other one was. He could not even feel its presence, and he should be able to do that no matter where it was. A slight pull in the direction of the key. However, what he could feel was another pull. The Boy was back.

'Why? Why come back?" The Demi-God said to himself. He looked around his throne room, at his guards, who he did not need and at Kiima who perhaps he may possibly need from time to time.

'From where ever he was sent too he is now back.'

"Kiima. I need you to go to Tokyo and find Ranma. He has returned and I want to know his intentions." Saffron looked at his most trusted advisor. 'While I do not feel it in this world he may know where the ice key is. Find him, and find out if he is my enemy or not."

The Girl just bowed and left.

He must have that key, one way or the other.

&^%$# ! #$%^&

Ranma zoned them out, again. While he was their instructor there were things he would never understand. Girl talk was one of them. They were going to the Ono Dojo to meet with his newest student and perhaps soon to be heir of the Saotome style of Anything goes. Though it looks like they were going to be reaching the limit of space in the Saotome home. He was sure at least for now his mother was overjoyed to have faces there with her, but he wondered how long she would be able to handle this. It was an issue he was going to have to resolve sooner rather than later.

'Maybe I should talk to 'Sumi-chan about how to make enough money to get a proper living arraignment set up'. Ranma continued in his thoughts as the girls all chattered at each other like a pack of squirrels arguing over who had the most nuts. 'course I could just make them all sleep in the Dojo' he almost grinned about that idea. 'I cant let myself be too soft on Anything Goes students after all'

*Ching-Ching*

Ranma subconsciously ducked his head. That sound pulled him from his thoughts. Every time he heard that sound all he could think about was having a bicycle land on his head. He looked around rapidly but failed to find anything right off.

*Ching-Ching*

Ranma tracked the sound in the direction of the opposite end of the platform they were waiting to trains He looked at saw two figures standing still, looking down the platform at him. They were too distant to make out, though part of his brain thought they screamed "Problem" to him. Ranma ran towards where they were but as soon as he lost eye contact with them momentarily, when he looked again they were gone. Again.

'Twice now. Really I am losing my touch if they are the same two who were watching me last time. ' He sighed and went back to the group. A few of the salary men waiting gave him somewhat envious looks at what appeared to be a bunch of girls who were all so attached to him.

On the train Ranma stood with the girls nearby, looking out the window. It was odd to think about the speed of the world, when compared to his time in the Realm. It truth he was as much a child of the Realm as he was of this world. More so since the since he found himself in the Realm. This world of place oftraining his father did also had very little to do with the minset now. He had grown up. Everyone seemed to interested in getting from place to place now. He looked around at some of the haunted faces on the train with him. 'All of this rushing back and forth for a world you never take the time to see'. The thought of this sort of life was something he wanted to avoid. For all of the fighting being a Hunter was, it was the peace in between the hunts and his time representing Saiel helped him understand why you lived. You lived to be part of the joy of life itself.

Eventually they reached the stop they needed, and started walking the few blocks to the Ono Dojo. When they got there the three girls lined up and waited for Ranma to speak with Kasumi.

Ranma knocked on the door and as usual he was greeted by the younger nurse to be, Akane Ono. She motioned for everyone to come inside as she got her mother.

"Ranma-kun" Kasumi said as she walked into the living/waiting room. "it's so nice to see you. How is Nabiki-chan doing?"

"She is fine, I think anyway. She seems to be doing better at least each day." Replied Ranma. "I am here to get Ranko. I know we are a little late but some things had come up".

Kasumi smiled. "She is so very excited about this. I am sure she will forgive you."

Ranma motioned to the girls to go get Ranko and make sure she was ready.

Ranko herself had already packed. In fact she had packed several days ago, just to be ready. Her older brother was better at the Art than she was but she wanted it more. She wanted it much more. The chance to learn the lost Air style of Anything goes, and to be its first disciple of it was just more than she could handle her excitment for. While Ranma had not yet designated an heir, she knew she could be it. That she WOULD be it, no matter how hard that made her work.

The girls came up and started chatting. Ranko had already completed everything, so they took it all downstairs, to watch another match.

Ranma had decided to personally test the Ono branch.

"Kasumi. Please call your heir and I wish for all of the Ono branch to spar with me at once."

She nodded but Dr Ono's voice was heard "All of them? Does that include me?" Tofu asked innocently.

Ranma knew where this was going to go. Kasumi with her flowing movements and defenses opening the opponent up for Tofu's shiatsu strikes. A very effective tactic, against anyone but him.

"Of course Tofu. You may participate. I will even allow for shiatsu strikes, open for both sides."

Tofu blanched a bit. He had hoped Ranma would have forgotten his own training in Shiatsu but that was not to be.

6 shiatsu strikes from Ranma and less than a min later, all 4 of the Ono's who were participating were paralyzed. He unlocked each of them, addressing Ranko.

"Ranko, what did you learn from that?"

Ranko thought a moment. "Don't mess with Ranma-sensei?"

Ranma rolled his eyes. "No. Anyone else?"

Everyone else was silent, not wanting to appear foolish.

Eventually Hotaru answered. "No matter how good at something you are, someone else is going to be better, or have a better day than you do"

"Good"

After more instruction of the Ono's Ranko looks at her brother.

"I am going to get Soooooo much better than you" she stuck her tongue out at him.

Ran-kun just looked at her. It was not like this was his obsession anyway. She was too much like her uncle. Ran-kun really just wanted to be like his dad, and be a doctor. The art did help that., but it was not his life.

"Knock yourself out, Sis." Ran-kun may not want to be the best, but he could still beat her more or less every time he tried. "or better yet, come back often and I will knock you out myself" he smirked at her.

Ranma laughed inside a bit. 'so that is what having a sister is like. It might have been fun had things been different.' Ranma knew however that nothing would have been the same if things had been 'Different'. He would not be who he was, without that choas.

Eventually they all pack up to take the train back to the Saotome home.

_&^%$# ! #$%^&_

Kazuki looked out with pride at the new store. It had taken the whole family to get it ready for his sister Yu to take over, but in the end it was worth it. A new Kounji restaurant, "Yu-Chans Okonomiyaki". Great location, near Todai and promised to be a very profitable store. Next on the list was going back to work at Eiii's store in Juuban. At least that will be closer to the school he and his brother attended. When he was old enough he wanted to take over the original one, and rename U-chans to Ka-kun's.

Takashi Kounji started to walk over to Kazuki. Even for a Kounji he thought Takashi was weird.

"MY BROTHER, Today we are one step closer to our ultimate goal. WORLD DOMINATION through Okonomiyaki!" exclaimed Takashi. Kazuki groaned inside 'He is back on THAT topic again.'

"Taka-Baka, is it possible for you not to do that in that creepy voice?" Kazuki sighed.

"But my brother, this is our dream!, this is our FUTURE! out There The World of the Brothers 2! This is our DESTINY" replied Takashi.

"Been watching Tron 2 again I see. You taka, are Clu-less."

Takashi glared at him for the pun.

Ukyou looked much older, lines on her face and already some sign's of grey starting to appear in her hair. The women of her family tended to go a great silver as they aged, Ukyou was going to be no exception. She was walking up as well, and had been listening to the exchange.

"Ta-kun, if you keep this up I am going to start calling you Kuno again". She smirked at her son.

Takashi just glare at them both and walked away.

"He never changes" Ukyou said to her other son. Kazuki nodded and started back to the new shop, so he could head back home.

Ukyou had a rough night last night though and was very tired. Her dreams were rough on her and she could not get them out of her mind.

'Why am I thinking about HIM again. He is dead and gone. I got married. I have four great kids. Just because this is close to this is the anniversary of Kegi-chans death…" She felt all of the anguish pouring out of her.

"Dammit. Why. I should be thinking about Kegi not Ranma. Why does every man in my life leave?" she said quietly to herself.

In her dream lst night she saw a great crystal hall. She saw HIM at the front. He was dressed all in black, with silver or crystal trim and buttons. Standing next to him was a very good looking woman also dressed in black and standing off to his left.

She watched him marry two women that could only be described as goddess's. She saw the light come and bless them.

'Did he just go to heaven then? Why could that not have been me?' Not letting her mood spoil her daughters opening day she quickly stamped it all down.

"Well, Time to go back to the opening. I have to at least pretend to be cheerful." She said to herself. But her thoughts echoed back to her 'just like always before. Pretend to be cheerful. Always just an act'.

_&^%$# ! #$%^&_

The white hive grows taller. In the night the hive builds shapes around it, forming camouflage around itself. It now was looking like a drinking fountain between its shell and the magics around it. White was trying to grow into a new form. A much more powerful form. While it grew it could sense both a hunter, and others of its kind. It must consume them all.

That night, white took its first child. it would be one of many in nights to come.

The other two hives were still just now starting to consume smaller animals. They also sensed one another. They also hungered.

_&^%$# ! #$%^&_

Nabiki gently placed the phone back on its cradle. That was one of what she used to call her factors, girls who helped her collect money from loans. Now here she comes calling on her old mentor asking her if she feels up to doing photography for her.

Nabiki sighed. Nabiki had always thought SHE would be the one to have her own company. That She would be the one that grew rich. Life had a funny way of messing with Nabiki's plans.

She looked around the house. Signs of the growing horde were gathered in the living room, as the girls all were being moved into the dojo. Privacy screens and futons would be placed there, turning at night the dojo into a dorm for the budding female martial artists. Nodoka seemed pleased with this idea, as it once again freed her house of the disorder that was so prevalent around her recently returned son. To be truthful Nabiki felt that Ranma could has moved the entire Nermia ward into this house, and as long as Ranma stayed living there Nodoka would have allowed it.

'Can I really go through this again?' she thought to herself. 'Yumiko is offering me a way to work my way back into society. I should take her up on that. But can I do it from here? Its not the chaos I am afraid of.'

Nabiki still looked forlornly at a picture of Ranma in a kata that she had taken years ago. 'Its Him, Can I go through all of this again. All of the women throwing themselves at him, and again me being unable to.'

"I just wish…" Nabiki said aloud. "Just one wish"

Nodoka had been about to enter the living room, but heard the pain in the other woman's voice. Nodoka knew exactly what Nabiki was wishing for. She waited a few moments more and entered, resolved to try and cheer Nabiki up.

Far, far from this place, someone else heard Nabiki's wish as well. If they decided to do anything about it remained to be seen.

_&^%$# ! #$%^&_

A cheerful brunette with short hair in a slightly odd haircut moved through the underwater city. She knew she was underwater, but did not seem to have any problems breathing. Just another day in the life of Misaki-chi Hibiki. Riding on her shoulder was her Obitsu, and closest thing to a friend she had, a doll named Hikaru. From time to time she would find parts of her closet that she could even talk to Hikaru, but this underwater city was not one of them.

Just like her twin sister, she was in the closet searching for her boyfriend-to-be. Poppa had told them both that if they looked there long enough they would be able to find their respective mates. They also had instructions that IF either of them found this Ranma Saotome, they were to tie themselves to him and take him as far away from the closet door as possible. Misaki had even found a special rope (that she had made from a shadowy spirder thing that she ran into and pounded on with her umbrella until it disapeared) that she would use on Ranma if she ever found him. Misaki also had another significant advantage over her twin though. She had found a part of the closet that held a huge library and in that library was a magazine all about Ranma. Weird thing was there was also a young man who looked kind of like her father who was also name Ryouga Hibiki. That was just weird.

She saw another one of those silly things, fish people she though coming her way. She could see FAR off in the distance that there was a giant statue of a huge ugly creature eating a squid, the tenticles hanging our around its mouth somewhere. The statue was a little hard to look at. It kind of shifted from her view every time she focused on it.

The fish person got close to her and tried to jump her in the water. Just like the last three she hit it with her umbrella, Killing it instatly. They dont make Deep Ones like the used too.

If her father had seen this, he would again scold her for being a violent maniac. She was also a very nice girl.

"Well, at least I have plenty to eat today. Hmmm love these fish things. IF I could only find some batter. Or tartar sauce." She smiled happily as she dismembered the Deep One.

_&^%$# ! #$%^&_

The signs of the sun were just making themselves be seen. The soft glow grew over the horizon as Ranma finished his warm up exercises. Today he was concentrating on his harder katas, and doing them in absolute silence. He had to maintain appearances after all. While he would not do anything bad to his new little student, he would however make sure she was at least woken up in the traditional Saotome style way. She DID want to learn it after all.

Stretching and kata's done he walked into the dojo. The "dorm" had soft sounds of sleeping occupants gently were heard in the room.

'Good' he thought to himself 'this should be fun.' He walked into the kitchen and filled a glass of warm water making sure it was warm enough to avoid any "accidents' where he was concerned. As he went back into the dojo, he simply checked auras to see which screen he needed . He quietly moved the screen so as to look down on the sleeping form of his youngest student. Ranko was lieing half on and half off of the futon, clutching her pillow to her chest. Her head lay at an odd angle but young children were made of elastic, so this would not be a problem for her. Ranma took a moment to take a picture of this with the phone him mother so conveniently had given him, so she could call him anywhere. One day in the future she would marry a gentleman who would later see this picture much to Ranko's annoyance and call her Su-chan as a nickname from that point forward.

Ranma smirked. He heard another person starting to wake, and saw Usa move the screen from her area. Usa froze, seeing the glass of water in his hand and the lying form of Ranko. She looked at him silently aghast that he was going to do what it looked like he was going to do.

Ranma smirked at her as well, and ever so slowly tipped the water over the sleeping girl.

First a drop hit her on the forehead. The two, then three. None of this made any difference. He noticed that Ranko was drooling. 'well this should clean her right up.' Ranma looked back at Usa, who was almost pleading for him not to do this.

*dump*

"Waaah!" *cough cough*

*sputter*

Usa just looked at Ranma with daggers in her eyes. What kind of jerk does that to a sleeping girl?

Ranko looked up at Ranma and of all things Giggled. Usa just boggeled at this.

"So I am officially a Saotome student!" the wet girl said. Usa just looked at her like she was insane.

Ranma could not resist saying it. He knew he shouldn't, but after hearing it so often he just had too.

"The path of a martial artist is filled with peril. Get up Girl it's time for your second lesson this morning." Ranma said sternly.

Ranko blinks. "What was the first one?"

"In the morning expect to get wet" Ranko smirked.

The rest of the girls were all awake right then and moving slowly. Other than Usa who was glad that she was not having to get water dumped on her first thing in the morning.

"I would like the rest of you ladies to clean the Dojo and then join me outside." he said to them as he led Ranko to the yard.

"Ohh and Girls. Expect that this may happen to you too." The looks went from shock to anger.

Usa felt inside Cassy laughing her little spiritual head off. For some reason she knew that this was not the first time Ranma had poured water on a sleeping girl. Usa was glad it was just not her.

She would be getting it soon enough.

_&^%$# ! #$%^&_

Takashi and Kazuki entered the school grounds.

"My Brother, we have returned to our place of learning. All in the effort to reach our Mighty Goal. WORLD DOMINATION!" spouted Takashi grandly.

Kazuki just slapped his head. 'How was this baka his twin?'

"Takashi, it is too Damm Early for your stupidity. We have been gone now a couple of weeks, I want to get our last bit of homework and relax." Kazuki said to his brother.

Usually when a student was gone as long as they were it would be a problem with the school. The Kounji family had however convinced the school to allow them these times off periods based on the condition that they maintained their high levels of testing. There were only a couple of students who did better than they did, and respectively they were ninth and eleventh in the whole of japan in on placment tests.

Kazuki looked out at the common area in front of the school and watched a small club perform what looked like martial arts. At thier front appeared to be the club leader, who was teaching them. He moved around correcting forms, of the three girls present, and seemed to emphasize precision over the brute force method of the MMA club. Kazuki was a little surprised to see the Captain of the MMA club sitting and watching attentively.

Something stuck Kazuki as odd or familiar about the instructor. A young man, with a long pony tail. Something about this bugged Kazuki; he just for the life of him could not figure it out.

'Ohh well, it will come to me eventually. It always does.' Kazuki and Takashi both walked into the school, and went to the office to collect their paperwork before heading to class.

_Ok this chapter is done._

_In the words of Nysk and I quote "_

**I encourage you to post a review of this story.** Flames for will be ignored while helpful suggestions/comments/criticisms are always welcomed.

"


	17. Chapter 13 No love untouched by hate

**Chapter 12 There is no love untouched by hate. No courage without fear.**

Standing outside of time and space, before the pools of existence the two beings examined the flow.

"_You are moving again. Trying for that perfection. I did not mean for that to happen when I created your world." _The light intoned.

The dark looked passively. She had long grown past her frightening visage, as she gained more and more control of the old universe they had both belonged too. She was in her mind Perfection. She took all that existed, took it into herself and made it reflect her. As she was perfect, she would make all perfect, and unchanging.

"_**You sought the perfect world. My creation was inevitable once you created it"**_

"_I CREATED an artificial world in a computer. I did not create some evil Ghost virus, who decided her programing required her to infect every level of reality above her.!"_

"_**You are still the creator, knowingly or not, you gave me life, and I gave the universe a perfect being to emulate. You should be proud. Perfection overran the old universe, and I shall see it become perfect here."**_

"_Avatars then? Again?. You know the rules, we take the same person, and pit them against each other until one is dominant."_

"_**You lost to me before, with your sister. You will lose to me now as well."**_

The light remembered that loss. A miscalculation on her part. Her own sister formed from half of her and half of another sister had been split into two beings to act as avatars for the light and dark. While she chose correctly for the side of good, it was the wrong side for existence. Sometimes picking the morally correct can lead to a disaster.

The Two figures make their choice. Setsuna would represent them both, two forms fighting for dominance. Their fight would decide continuance or stagnation in the future.

&^%$# ! #$%^&

Two weeks in the past

&^%$# ! #$%^&

Rei had stormed off after her dressing down from her princess. Round and round her mind went, trying to make sense of the events as they occurred. A new enemy has arrived one that was realistically immune to the scouts as they stood now. She had almost killed someone that looked like a demon but appeared in the end to be an innocent. She had stepped over some lines with her friends earning her a serious dressing down by someone who was more or less her Queen. To top this all off she could no longer feel the touch of the sacred fire within her. She felt cold inside.

"Stepped over some lines?" Rei said to herself "I more or less tramped them down, and tried to erase them".

One the one hand she was angry at Usagi and Ranma. However as she walked farther and farther from the tower, off into the city she came to discover that she was more angry with herself.

'I hurt everyone. I even made like of Usa being never born. What kind of person am I?'. A sense of darkness and self-disgust started to fill her.

It had been growing dark as she walked. She came to one of the many parks near her home and decided to take some time to think about things. She sat on a swing, dwelling of her situation while she sat on an unmoving swing.

This park held the castle of the black Iraqou. The creatures moved here and there, hiding under illusions, and gathering energy for the queen. The queen sensed an immense life force within Rei, and slowly started to gather her drones into their first attack on a fully grown human. The black colored being s started to move through the brushes, encircling her for the soon to be launched attack.

The Queen looked with some anticipation at the pure force within this girl. Rei's life force alone may be able to give her enough energy to destroy Blacks rivals.

About to give the command to attack, the queen felt a terribly cold presence. There was another vast power there, moving in Rei's direction. This power was not made from any life force. This power seemed to be the antitheses of the type of life force the creature of the thirst needed to advance to her next form. Death had come to this park. Death bearing its own fire. Death bearing its own hunger.

Rei had been staring ahead, not really seeing much as she ran her thoughts in circles about the situation. It was all wrong to her. Everything she had done just messed the situation up further, and she was a lot of the blame. Spiraling more into depression she just fed on herself.

There was a slight creaking that made her look up. She saw in the lengthening shadows that there was a very old woman, pushing a vintage baby carriage across the park. Over the top of the carriage on a curved pole was a rice paper lantern. It glimmered in the darkness drawing Rei's eyes to it. The old woman approached Rei with her carriage with the light flickering in the dusk.

"Hello, little one," A slightly whiney voice from the old woman. Rei looked at her and behind the lantern's light she could not seem to get a good look at what the woman looked like.

"Hello" Rei stood and bowed to the elder woman. Some nagging part of her mind told her to mind her manners carefully. "I am Rei Hino and I am honored to meet you. "

The old woman's face was still hidden but Rei got an impression that she was smiling slightly.

"Now why is such a pretty young woman sitting here dwelling inside her head?" The fact that the woman did not introduce herself was not lost on Rei. It was usually reserved for someone talking to another who was far below in station.

Rei sighed as she had been dwelling on. "I have been thinking about my friends, and the distances we seem to have at present.

Rei finally could see at least one eye on the old woman as her head shifted a bit.

"Distance? Have they all moved away from here?" questioned the old woman.

Rei shook her head. "No, I think I have driven them off a bit through my own selfishness. I did and said some awful things. Now I am not sure what we are anymore" Rei looked down at the ground feeling she almost ready to cry.

"That is a terrible thing, to betray one's own friends. I would always be careful doing things like that it can draw supernatural attentions you see. Especially since you're a Miko" the voice had taken a more whining tone to it. Her eye grew a little brighter.

Rei sighed "So you have been up to the shrine then? Do you know my grandfather?"

"I know of your grandfather, but never had the" the old woman paused for a moment "Pleasure of meeting him personally. I have met many folks who spoke highly of his devotion however." Rei could almost hear a snicker from the older woman.

The light of the lantern started to dip in its intensity as the woman had been speaking. Rei finally noticed the darkness as it was descending on the park.

"I just wish I could take a few of those things back. I never really meant to hurt them" Rei was of course lying to herself. She had been so self-absorbed that she reacted like it was all her right to act that way.

"Another thing to be wary of, if you don't want to attract unwanted attention. Dishonesty is like honey to some of the darker spirits"

Rei felt the dark creep into her. She was feeling cold. Not like with the spider thing that merely took her energy. This was Vile. Like her spirit was being infected by something cancerous.

The old woman rasped at her. "But it too late for that isn't it Rei-chan. You already have gotten So Much Notice. Your spirit is so tasty." Rei could see her face clearly now. The eye she thought she saw was the only one there. A huge mouth had been hidden in the shadows. The frail old woman seems to be a small Oni, but one with power. Rei knew the old woman for what it was: Bakechochin, the lantern demon.

Rei felt her revulsion spread over her body. She was cold, her limbs were heavy, and she could not quite seem to move well.

"No" Came almost a whimper from the normally fiery miko. I have to.." Rei started again.

"You have too? Have you not yet done enough? I shall enjoy consuming you girl" the baby carriage disappeared, and the lantern was floating above its head. It approached her making ready to take her to the dark underworld.

Just as it got close enough to almost reach her, a circle of flames formed around Rei, who dropped to her knees within the circle.

"ENOUGH!" shouted a very familiar voice to her. A very old man, dressed with the robes of a priest appeared coming from the direction of the shrine. "Enough demon, you cannot have her."

"She called me, Fool. Her spirit lays broken, and her heart has turned against her. I can do as I please." Replied the Oni who spat on the ground at the elder Hino's feet. "You are not powerful enough to stop me."

The flames grew in power, and turned a brilliant white. A voice surrounded all of them calling to them. At this sound the Oni screamed in pain and rage. Then turned to a mist.

"I can, for she is my servant. Be gone." Came the voice of the great fire, protecting its follower. "Be gone for I hold dominion over her."

Rei looked at the white flames, and started to cry. She could feel the disappointment coming from the flames.

"Daughter, we have much to discuss. I am displeased with you."

&^%$# ! #$%^&

She should have been gone. Lady Pluto knew that. She had felt being ripped apart, torn from reality as she knew it. However here she was. She still existed. Even after being ripped from time. She existed.

She stood staring at a pair of time gates.

She knew that she needed to enter one; she needed to take possession of it, and use it to bring herself into being. To bring her perfection into reality

She also knew just how big a paradox she was creating.

She didn't really did not care. Perfection was worth any price. Lady Pluto touched one of the gates. The gate and Pluto faded from sight leaving a behind a single time gate for the Other.

&^%$# ! #$%^&

Setsuna stood in front of the gates again. She had only been retreating to sleep in her own room. Today Setsuna was standing trying to reconcile in her head the differences of her current task, or following Usagi's wishes versus the knowledge that her future self gave her. How could she balance the life of one innocent against the end of humanity in whole? Without the future of Crystal Tokyo what would be left of humanity

'He may cause the end of crystal Tokyo. My future self has shown me that it can come about. We have to protect humanity from extinction" she thought troubled by these thoughts.

Almost in answer to her, she could hear own voice saying "_But what if that is not the only way? Why give into the deaths of billions of people just for a few thousand to survive_?"

Setsuna swore she could almost hear it as a voice coming from the gate itself. _"Why are we assuming this is the only way? The Best one?"_

"Everyone is going to die anyway. The freeze guarantees that." Setsuna replied to the gate.

"_How do you know? What if there was a way to stop it before it happened."_ Setsuna accepted that this must be some sort of delusion for the gate to talk to her but it was happening.

"_Your future self would only know her past, so why would she ever say anything else could happen? To her it would have been. Doesn't she have some sort of vested interest in her own self protection_?" The gate continued.

"Are you saying there is another way to bring Crystal Tokyo into being?" Setsuna did not for an instant believe this, she had seen the probability's for herself.

"_No, but what if there came about a reason that it never was needed in the first place? What if you could find a possible way to stop the Great Freeze from coming about at all? Would you take THAT path?_" replied the gate.

Setsuna thought about this. Crystal Tokyo was all she had looked for and worked on for years. It had been the only path she really understood since the Fall. Was there some other way that she had not seen?

"A world without crystal Tokyo? One with humanity alive, but without Serenity as queen? I am not sure that I am even free enough to try for that." Setsuna replied after a long pause.

"_I never said that Usagi could not be queen. There may be another reason altogether for that. I merely ask if you could would you make the attempt at saving life even if Crystal Tokyo never comes into being_." The gate had taken on a sort of shape in Setsuna's mind. 'Yeap, I am delusional, but maybe my own mind is trying to tell me about something I missed.'

"What would this path be then? To stop the great freeze? I could never even see what caused it, much less how to stop it."

"_You must decide this for yourself. Are you willing to take a chance and change things, or are you only willing to take the path of least resistance, no matter how many you have to let die in the process_?" The gate was drilling idea in her head.

Setsuna sighed deeply. She could even try and ask Usagi but she knew Serenity's will in the end. If there was a chance, take it. Billions should not be sacrificed.

"Yes, I would try, if I could find a way."

Setsuna could almost feel the gate smile at this. "Then here is your task. _Look where you can't look, for your answer. Examine your blindness and find its maker. Your aid will come from the one who stands the most in your way_." And the presence in the gate was gone.

Setsuna thought to herself. She MUST just be going insane. "But at least I will like the view more"

&^%$# ! #$%^&

If Mammaru had any constant in his life for the last couple of years, it was that Usagi knocked him down every day. She had for years, and some part of him missed the frantic rush followed by the dull pain that throbbed through his head as he once more hit the ground. Every day for years this had been happening.

His jaw was still hurting from his friends punch. It had jarred him a bit, and for a moment afterward he was very dizzy. To Mammaru got up, like many times before and started to walk home, thinking about Usagi, and their weird relationship. It was not for several blocks that the dizziness returned. The Nausea and dizziness was much stronger this time. Mammaru' s last waking thought was to wonder if Usagi had knocked him over again.

A few hours later a doctor looked at the man in the room. He was examining a chart, and hoping that his condition improved. Written on the chart was "traumatic brain injury: signs of multiple concussions."

&^%$# ! #$%^&

Ami had been working for the nights now on adapting her computer to track the new threat.

"There that should do it' she happily said to herself. She pushed the last bit of code into the search algorithm she had written and turned it one

A red warning light appeared and red dots appears in several places across the city

"Ohh XXXX." Was the most coherent response she could come up with.

&^%$## ! #$%^&

Ranma felt that something was back. It didn't feel like a type one. It was more subtle for lack of a better term. Like it was softly existing and only occasionally feeding. He knew he had felt this before, aback in the Realm, but as far as he could tell, never really encountered anything that quite matched this sensation.

In the realm, the hives existed but were usually either consumed by higher types or eventually evolved into the eggs of a succubus.

'Whatever this is', thought Ranma, 'is something nearby.'

Ranma really sucked at one skill, even after years of trying. He just could not meditate well.

Usa on the other hand could hear not her own mediation but the voice of Cassy. Cassy's form was growing stronger, more powerful.

'Usa, here is near where they are. I can't see them directly, but here is the place daddy and I have been to that is close to where they are right now' Cassy thought to Usa.

Usa examined the image she knew all too well, the Hino shrine.

Cassy sent to her again 'tell Daddy to go there to look. They seem very familiar to me but I can't tell what they are.'

Usa went off to informs Ranma about the shrine. After reaching out his own senses, and feeling the discomfort had been lightly sensing grow stronger he turned to his students.

"Well girls, it's time to go take an old man up on his offer for a weekend".

&^%$# ! #$%^&

Change and Stasis looked down at the pool, seeing again their chosen champions beginning the tasks.

"_**You take the same path as before".**_ Stasis did not speak to the other as simply thought it to Change.

"_Of a sort, we are trying similar tactics again, but with one major difference."_ Change replied

"_**What difference, I don't see anything new from before."**_

"_Last time I tried to make someone who they were not. Turn a good person into a killer. This time I am helping her be who she is a protector."_

_**And how is this different from that which I do? You are keeping her static.**_

_Sometimes that very thing will bring about the most change._ Change smiled to herself. This time she would win.

**A Past remembered**

The Empire had existed since the fall. It started with a small fleet of survivors, who fled once they heard of the demolition of the Moon Kingdom by Beryl's demonic forces. There were a few dispersed combat ships scattered here and there, trying to forestall the end, when the hammer fell.

As the last surviving queen, Thepsis of Saturn led the few remaining forces and survivors out of the system. She could have opted for death of course. A suicidal attack on what remained of the earth forces. In many reality's this was in fact her action. Rage and pride would drive her to leave the survivors to their own devices and attempt, in vain, to bring justice. However this time she chose in spite of her extremely combative nature to protect what remained. She opted to preserve what she could, and resolved to discard what were any weaknesses of the Moon kingdom. Like the worlds they ended up inhabiting, the peoples of the Silver Kingdom were powerful, hard and would make the Spartans seem opulent.

Far from Sol, Thepsis found a nearby group of planets that were masked in darkness. These few conjoined planets had almost everything needed for life to occur, other than the lack of the light of a Sun. Heat from within the radioactive cores of the planets provided heat, and a background light through black crystal veins woven across the planets themselves that each ran near to the core. What eventually became the capitol was built on a moon of solid black crystal, and when powered by the inhabitants glowed like the very image of the full moon.

This was not the nega-verse, or anything like it. It was a unique system that flourished without a sun. Because of the energies present, the lifespans were extended, even by the moon kingdoms standards. Hundreds of years became thousands. Magic was enhanced even more than in the moon kingdom due to the nature of the crystal imbedded in each of the four planets. For a time magic took precedence over science as they needed to create an environment for survival. Eventually the two came back into balance.

Out of respect for the past, and their own home that had been lost, they named themselves the Silver Kingdom. They took the symbol of a shining full moon. It matched the silver glow coming from the crystals unique to this system. Each reign was shown by the symbol of the house who claimed the title. Other than a few notable exceptions the house of Saturn itself usually ruled.

Queen Thepsis spent the next two thousand years trying to set up a survivable system. While many of the survivors were tired of war, she ensured that if they were ever followed by Beryl's forces, they would be ready. Cities were formed; space stations and Combat ships eventually took flight throughout the system. At the end of that time, Thepsis grew tired, and encased herself in a techno-mage shell, keeping her alive, and waiting for the day she would be needed again. It gave her a chance to rest, to dream and wait for a day she knew would come.

After this, her son Menes became rule of the system. While a break from the past, men were as allowed to rule as women. The new system relied on competency rather than ideology. The time was almost peaceful. They had more advances, more in magic than science. The art of planetary taps was rediscovered, and Menes daughter, Nix became the first Sorceress Queen, succeeding her father. Living up to her title, she found that while she was able to create Senshi for this system, they would never be able to leave it. If they went too far from their planetary taps, and they would burn alive, trying to contain the magic's with in them. The Senshi were tasked with guarding the system itself, and not to serve the whims of the royal family, staying in system and on their home planets no matter what else happened.

Nix was followed by Toth the tinkerer. He held vast scientific knowledge, and brought back the power to travel between systems and through the beyond. The creation of these ships had been lost with only to original colony ship, and a few of the starting combat ships remaining of the Moon kingdom. He was the first to create planet killing devices, including one that sucked the life and energy from a world, in total. He tried to replicate the Silence itself, but was only able to partially. The ability to wield the Silence was held only by Thepsis, who slept waiting for the need of her return to power.

It was during Toth's rule that the Silver kingdom was first invaded. Another remnant of the Earth had found its way to their system. The King of Terra, Chron demanded that the Silver Kingdom become a tributary of the earth, and serve his rule. Chron traced his lineage to the Heirs of Pluto, and thought her a goddess, something that Lady Pluto of this time did little to discourage. The Lady Pluto here did not command Chron and the others to attack Toth, but she did subtly encourage it. Her ultimate task of bringing the area under a new moon kingdoms rule would be easier served by the encompassing of what she felt was the remnants of Saturn. She knew of the errant kingdom, and had helped the Earth prepare for this invasion.

The earth's fleet gleamed as they started to surround the 4 planets, with Chron's demands. The advisors to Toth pleaded with him to awake his ancestor, Thepsis but Toth refused. He had faith in his kingdom and people that they did not need the additional force that she would bring to bear.

Toth's new fleets encompassed his idea of Pure power. He combined the best of the magical defenses and techno-magical offence. Toth did not wait for the demands to continue, and when the earth forces surrounded his system, he launched his attack.

The fleets of the great earth Kingdom's, Atlantis and Mu engaged the forces of Neo-Saturn. The war of the Silver Crescent as it was to be called fought until the Silver forces surrounded the Earth. From the heavens a great bombardment began, that continued until both kingdoms fell under the waves, and just a few humans remained. The side effects of the weapons that were used twisted men, making them more beasts than human, and Toth chose to abandon the earth forever, leaving it to its fate. It would eighteen thousand years until the time of the rebirth of the Senshi, and another two thousand years until the line of Saturn would return in force to the earth.

_Authors Notes:_

_Sorry about the delay, been difficult at best to write without a computer. _

_I think that the Change is fairly obvious at this point. At least if you read Gold Digger. There is an un-prize for anyone who can figure out who Stasis is, prior to me having them named later on._

_In answer to another question, All of the various twins (other than shampoo's) are named and characterized by specific anime characters from other shows. The easiest one to identify is Misaki and her doll from angelic layer. Have fun with the rest of them. Shampoo's kids are just puns._

_No this is not intended to be a multi-cross; I just like the characterizations of each of them ;)_


End file.
